Mount Slamet's Status Raised to Alert Level

Jakarta (Antara) - The status of Mount Slamet located in the districts of Banyumas, Purbalingga, Pemalang, Tegal and Brebes in Central Java has been raised to Alert Level II due to its increasing activity. "Mount Slamet's activity is increasing and so its danger status has been raised to Alert Level II," the spokesman of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, stated here on Wednesday. He pointed out that there had been 30 earthquake tremors and 67 others caused by smoke coming out of the volcano. Thick white, brown and grey smoke was also seen billowing up to 150 to 700 meter high. A total of 26 booms were heard and hot lava was seen flowing down 1.5 thousand meters away from the tip of the mountain. "In general, the intensity and frequency of Mount Slamet's eruption has been increasing," he pointed out. He added that the government has recommended local governments to evacuate areas within a radius of four kilometers from the peak of the mountain. "Mountaineering, camping and other tourism activities within the radius are not allowed," he emphasized. (*) Reporting by Wuryanti Puspitasari