14/07: Disaster warning
Category: General
Posted by: Raja Petra
Volcanic eruptions, high waves could hit Indonesians soon JAKARTA - A WARNING has gone out to Indonesians to brace themselves for a rash of natural disasters in the coming weeks.Senior government officials are warning of possible volcanic eruptions at 12 sites spread across the sprawling archipelago, The Jakarta Post reported yesterday. At the same time, the weatherman is signalling a different sort of danger - that from huge waves smashing against many coastal regions. In response to the looming threats, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has ordered government agencies dealing with emergencies to be prepared for the worst. At least 12 volcanoes are active throughout the country, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said after a Cabinet meeting on Thursday. He said that the danger rating of 10 volcanoes is at the third-highest level, and that they require close monitoring. Another, Soputan in North Sulawesi, is at the second-highest danger level. The 12th, Mount Gamkonora, a 1,635m-high volcano on Halmahera Island in North Maluku province, is on the highest alert status and has been spitting rocks, ash and smoke into the air since Monday. Experts fear an eruption is imminent, and 13,000 people have been evacuated from its slopes. A geologist yesterday warned that magma is rising. 'We have to pay attention in case of a big tectonic quake, which will give an impetus to the volcano to emit lava,' warned Mr Saud Simatupang of the volcanology office. Indonesia sits on the so-called 'Pacific Ring of Fire', where continental plates meet, causing frequent volcanic and seismic activity. The archipelago country has the world's highest number of active volcanoes. Mount Gamkonora, some 2,700km north-east of Jakarta, has erupted 12 times since records have been kept. Meanwhile, meteorologists are warning that waves in excess of 6m in height are expected to pound eastern coastlines, persisting until next month. Their warning follows the devastation wreaked by super typhoon Man-yi, which formed in the western Pacific this week before striking Japan, resulting in high seas and wind speeds of up to 162kmh. On Wednesday, Indonesian passenger ship KM Wahai Star, plying the Buru Island-Ambon route and carrying more than 60 passengers, sank off Pulau Tiga Isle. High waves were blamed for the accident. Ships of all types were barred from travel when waves reached between 3m and 6m in height, meteorology agency chairman Sri Woro Budiharti Haryono said. Besides the threat from volcanoes and waves, the government has also warned of the possibility of flooding and forest fires in the coming months.
I pity the flight of the people in that area...
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