Mount Kelud's Status Lowered

Surabaya, E Java (Antara) - The status of the recently erupted Mount Kelud, located in East Java, has been lowered to standby after a coordination meeting by the team monitoring the volcano's activities. "After monitoring the volcano's eruption activities from the time it had erupted last week until today, we can announce that the Mount Kelud's status has been lowered to standby," Head of Geological Agency of Indonesia Surono stated here Thursday. There has been a marked decrease in volcanic activities at the Mount Kelud, such as a decrease in volcanic quakes that can trigger volcanic eruption and tremors. "So, it is not me who is lowering the Mount Kelud's status, it is the volcano itself that is showing a decrease in activity," Surono added. The team involved in monitoring the volcano's activities constitutes members from the Geological Agency of Indonesia, National Disaster Management Agency, Governor of East Java, East Java Police Chief, and Regional Military Commander V. The first eruption of Mount Kelud in East Java occurred on Thursday (Feb. 13) at 10:50 p.m. (GMT+7), and the volcano spewed an estimated 120 million to 200 million cubic meters of volcanic material. Mount Kelud's volcanic ash reportedly spread across a number of places in East Java, Yogyakarta, Central Java, West Java, and West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) that is located about 13 thousand kilometers away. This was caused by the eruption that reached a height of 17 kilometers (km), spewing up large volumes of ash up to 200 million cubic meters, which was scattered by the wind in different directions. (*)