TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Mount Merapi spewed phreatic eruption again on early Monday, May 21. The Institute for Research and Technology Development of Geological Disaster (BPPTKG) Yogyakarta in its official Twitter account announced a small phreatic erupted at 01:25 local times.
"As observed from Babadan Post, there has been a small phreatic eruption or gusts on May 21 at 1:25 am for 19 minutes with a smoke height of 700 meters," as quoted from BPPTKG Twitter account in Yogyakarta.
BPPTKG also confirmed the small eruption resulted in the ash rain, especially in the western region of Mount Merapi. The seismic amplitude measured at 20 mm was still considered a normal status.
BPPTKG underlined the eruption today was smaller than on May 11, 2018. "We urge the Merapi residents to please stay calm."
Yogyakarta Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD)’s Quick Response Team (TRC) Commander Wahyu Pristiawan said that no residents living in the mountain slope experienced the phreatic eruption.
"A thin ash fell on the southern slopes of Mount Merapi, and now there is no more ash," Pristiawan said, adding that the evacuation effort was not needed since the eruption considered safe.
"The conditions are under control, we urged people around Mount Merapi to use masks to anticipate the ash," he further said.
ANTARA