Indonesia's Laki-Laki volcano erupts, killing nine people

JAKARTA, Indonesia – At least nine people died after the eruption of Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki in eastern Indonesia on Sunday, which spewed explosive clouds of lava and forced authorities to evacuate several surrounding villages, officials said Monday.

Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki on Flores Island in East Nusa Tenggara Province erupted at 11:57 p.m. local time (11:57 a.m. ET) on Sunday, spewing a fiery red column of lava, volcanic ash and glowing rock, Hadi Wijaya said a spokesman for the Center of Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation on Monday.

“After the eruption, there was a power outage and then it rained and violent lightning caused panic among residents,” he told Reuters, adding that the authority had raised the volcano's status to Level IV, or the highest level.

The agency has recommended clearing a radius of more than 4 miles.

Fiery lava and rocks hit the nearest settlements about 2 miles from the crater, burning and damaging residents' homes, Hadi said.

At least nine people had died as of Monday morning, said Heronimus Lamawuran, a local official in the East Flores area, adding that the outbreak had affected seven villages.

“We have started evacuating residents to other villages since this morning” located about 21 kilometers (13 miles) from the crater, he said.

The nearest villages were covered by thick volcanic ash on Monday morning, Heronimus added.

Authorities are still collecting data on the number of evacuees and damaged buildings.

Indonesia lies on the “Pacific Ring of Fire,” an area of ​​high seismic activity across multiple tectonic plates.

This eruption follows a series of eruptions from various volcanoes in Indonesia. In May, a volcano on the remote island of Halmahera, Mount Ibu, led to the evacuation of people from seven villages.

The Ruang volcano in North Sulawesi also erupted in the spring, prompting authorities to evacuate more than 12,000 people.

Last December, a surprise eruption at Mount Marapi in West Sumatra province left two dozen climbers making their way up the nearly 9,480-foot mountain.