A major volcano eruption from Mount Ruang in the North Sulawesi province of Indonesia Wednesday has caused thousands of people to be evacuated from their homes.Immediately following the eruption, more than 800 people were evacuated from Ruang to a nearby island, Tagulandang. Indonesian authorities warned residents of spreading ash, hot volcanic clouds, and falling debris and said there is a possibility of a subsequent tsunami if pieces of the volcano collapse into the sea. With smoke still billowing from the volcanic crater more than 500 metres above its 725-metre peak after at least four eruptions on Thursday, 11,000 residents have been told to evacuate a danger zone of a radius of six kilometres. Authorities also closed the nearest international airport in Manado city on Sulawesi island for 24 hours.The Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation issued its highest-level alert, Level 4, indicating an active eruption.“At least 11,615 residents who are in the risk area must evacuate to a safe place,” Abdul Muhari, the head of the disaster agency’s disaster data, communications and information centre said..“The current condition, particularly the road condition, is covered by volcanic material,” local rescuer Ikram Al Ulah said, per the Associated Press.“Currently, many people are still wandering around. Maybe to evacuate precious goods from their house.”The eruption reportedly exceeded 4 on the volcanic explosivity index, comparable to the Hunga Tonga eruption in 2022, per an update from meteorologist Mike Masco.Masco noted Mount Ruang is a “stratovolcano,” a structure more steep and cone-shaped than other volcanoes, “with different chemical elements that could create different global impacts than the Tonga eruption.”
