Lava flows down sides of Indonesian volcano

MOUNT MERAPI, Indonesia, May 16: Lava streamed down the sides of Indonesia's mystical Mount Merapi today, but the clouds of hot gas belching from the top were substantially smaller than the day before.

Around the base of the mountain that some Indonesians consider sacred, thousands of residents went about their daily lives despite orders to evacuate.

Vulcanologists say Merapi was in its final eruption phase and feared the possible collapse of a swelling lava dome at the top, which could trigger more massive and dangerous clouds and sprays of lava.

During its last eruption in 1994, most of the 70 deaths were caused by the outpouring of hot ash and other material following the collapse of a lava dome.

When, or if, this might happen again was anyone's guess, said Triyani, an official at the Centre of Vulcanological Research and Technology Development in Yogyakarta near Mount Merapi.

''We cannot predict, because this mountain is unique,'' she said of the nearly 3,000 metre conical-shaped volcano in the centre of Java island.

Today, lava flows could be seen in the pre-dawn hours, although they did not threaten populated areas, while the clouds around the summit looked to be about half the size of yesterday's, Reuters witnesses said.

No ash falls were reported, unlike yesterday when grey ash coated fields and houses near the mountain.

''By 6 a.m. this morning there were 11 hot clouds'' that had erupted from the mountain, said Triyani.

She told Reuters by telephone that the biggest was two kilometres in length down the side of the mountain, while yesterday the cloud length had reached four kilometres.

In 1994, the clouds stretched 6 km before a deadly rain of material started falling. The volcano killed 1,300 people in 1930.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is scheduled to fly to the near-by city of Solo today. Solo lies around 50 km from Merapi. Vulcanologists say as the clouds emerge from the crater their temperature can approach 1,000 degrees Celsius (1,832 degrees Fahrenheit), although the temperature drops rapidly once the gas shoots up into the air.

Merapi, about 450 km east of Jakarta, is one of the most active volcanoes in Indonesia, which sits along the Pacific ''Ring of Fire''.

Indonesia raised the alert status of Merapi on Saturday to the highest level, known as code red or danger status, and moved more than 5,000 people living near the volcano to shelters.

Thousands more reportedly fled after yesterday's clouds and ash falls, but many remain reluctant to desert their homes and their livelihoods.

Others who have left return during the days to tend livestock, collect grass, or otherwise carry on their daily routines.

Indonesian chief social welfare minister Aburizal Bakrie told reporters yesterday ''many residents are still in the dangerous area... about 24,000 people. We urge them to come down.'' Some villagers consider the volcano sacred. Every year, a traditional Javanese priest climbs to the top to make an offering.

Most Javanese, who make up the bulk of Indonesia's 220 million people, are Muslim, but many cling to a spiritual past and believe a supernatural kingdom exists on top of Merapi.

REUTERS