Jakarta: A volcano in western Indonesian has unleashed hot clouds of ash, killing at least six people and injuring several others.
Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra province blasted volcanic ash as high as 3 kilometres into the sky on Saturday, said National Disaster Management Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho.
Villagers and rescuers stand near a burning tree after it was hit by pyroclastic flows from the eruption of Mount Sinabung, in the background, in Gamber, North Sumatra, on Saturday.Credit: AP
He said ash tumbled down the slopes as far as 4.5 kilometres westward into a river.
The 2600-metre-high mountain in Karo District had been dormant for four centuries before springing to life in August 2010, killing two people and forcing 30,000 to flee.
A man covered in dust leads rescuers after an eruption of Mount Sinabung,on Saturday.Credit: AP
An eruption in February 2014 killed 16 people.
All the victims of Saturday's eruption were working on their farms in the village of Gamber in Simpang Empat subdistrict, about 4 kilometres away from the slope, or within the danger area.
"A search-and-rescue team continues to scour houses and farmlands in the area to look for more victims. It is unclear how many people were in the red zone when the hot clouds unleashed," The spokesman said.
The disaster management agency has declared areas within a radius of seven kilometres closed during the emergency.
In this image made from video, dead animals are covered in dust after hot clouds of ash erupted from Mount Sinabung, in Indonesia, on Saturday.Credit: AP
Mount Sinabung is among more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia, which is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the Pacific Ring of Fire, an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.
AP
Hot clouds of ash rise from Mount Sinabung, in Tanah Karo, North Sumatra, Indonesia, on Saturday.Credit: AP