Indonesia's Mount Lewotobi Blasts Ash 1,500 Meters High

(MENAFN) Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki, an active volcano in Indonesia's eastern East Nusa Tenggara province, erupted Wednesday evening, hurling a towering column of volcanic ash roughly 1,500 meters above its summit, the country's volcanological authority reported.

The Indonesian Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) said the eruption struck at 6:31 p.m. local time and lasted approximately three and a half minutes, with ash clouds drifting in a southwesterly direction. Despite the dramatic display, authorities noted no significant surge in volcanic tremors accompanying the event.

The volcano continues to sit at a Level II alert — the second tier on Indonesia's four-level warning scale — indicating elevated but monitored activity.

Authorities are urging both residents and tourists to maintain a strict four-kilometer exclusion zone around the crater. Officials additionally called on the public to wear masks and protective eyewear, and warned communities near river systems to remain on heightened alert for potential lahars — fast-moving volcanic mudflows that can be triggered by rainfall interacting with freshly deposited volcanic material.

MENAFN23042026000045017169ID1111022051