JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) 鈥 Indonesia鈥檚 rumbling Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki erupted Monday, sending a column of volcanic materials as high as 18 kilometers (11 miles) into the sky and depositing ash on villages.
The volcano has been at the highest alert level since last month and no casualties were immediately reported.
Indonesia鈥檚 Geology Agency recorded an avalanche of searing gas clouds mixed with rocks and lava traveling up to 5 kilometers (3 miles) down the volcano's slopes during the eruption. Observations from drones showed lava filling the crater, indicating deep movement of magma that set off volcanic earthquakes.
The column of hot clouds that rose into the sky was the volcano's highest since the major eruption in that killed nine people and injured dozens, said Muhammad Wafid, the Geology Agency chief. It also .
鈥淎n eruption of that size certainly carries a higher potential for danger, including its impact on aviation,鈥 Wafid told The Associated Press from Switzerland where he was attending a seminar. 鈥淲e shall reevaluate to enlarge its danger zone that must be cleared of villagers and tourist activities.鈥
The volcano monitoring agency had increased the alert status for Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki to the highest level after , and more than doubled an exclusion zone to a 7-kilometer (4.3-mile) radius since then as eruptions became more frequent.
After an eruption early last year, and the island鈥檚 Frans Seda Airport was closed. The airport has remained closed since then due to the continuing seismic activity.
The 1,584-meter (5,197-foot) mountain is a twin volcano with Mount Lewotobi Perempuan in the district of Flores Timur.
Monday鈥檚 eruption was one of Indonesia鈥檚 largest volcano eruptions since 2010 when Mount Merapi, the country鈥檚 most volatile volcano erupted on the densely populated island of Java. That eruption killed 353 people and forced over 350,000 people to evacuate affected areas.
Indonesia is an archipelago of more than 280 million people with frequent seismic activity. It has 120 active volcanoes and sits along the 鈥淩ing of Fire,鈥 a horseshoe-shaped series of seismic fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.
