Bali: Uitbarsting van de vulkaan Agung

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Bali governor urges volcanologists to reevaluate alert status of Mount Agung, hopes to get it lowered

Mount Agung volcano looms in the background of a Balinese Hindu tempe in the Kubu subdistrict of Karangasem Regency in Bali on September 26, 2017. Photo: Sonny Tumbelaka/AFP
Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika is desperate to get the alert status of Mount Agung lowered, raising concerns about the long-term economic impacts of the prolonged alert.

Pastika insists that some evacuees should be able to return home and get back to work.

“If only this could be reduced to standby status, the radius would be six kilometers,” Pastika said in Denpasar on Tuesday, as quoted by Antara Bali.

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Agung, located in Bali’s Karangasem regency, has been on level IV, the highest alert status for an eruption since Sept. 22, resulting in the evacuation of tens of thousands of local residents who had to leave the exclusion zone of 12 kilometers from the volcano’s crater. Around 139,199 evacuees have taken refuge at government-run shelters and tens of thousands have additionally fled to stay with family members and friends at other parts of the island.

The governor previously declared a state of emergency to help the government handle the high volume of evacuees. The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) says that as long as Agung is at level IV, they will keep extending the emergency status.

Pastika did not get into whether the actual science was there to back up downgrading Agung’s status to level III, but it being over a month since Agung was put on level IV, the governor did discuss the negative long-term impacts on the local economy, health, and education of the thousands of evacuees.

Not only are the people who have evacuated unable to work, but Bali Province has lost a number of its work force to handling the volcano.

And no doubt, the governor is concerned about how the alert status is affecting Bali’s biggest industry, tourism–which seems to be taking a hit.

“Because if we continue on like this, the impact will be felt very long,” Pastika said.

The governor says he does not want to endanger people by sending them back home too soon, but up-to-date monitoring equipment should allow for an eruption to be detected early, giving people enough time to quickly evacuate.

But of course it’s not up to the governor to determine the volcano’s status.

A coordination meeting is set for Oct. 26, according to Pastika. Meanwhile, the Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister has requested that Volcanology and Disaster Hazard Mitigation (PVMB) conduct another review of Agung’s status level and that there should be a “second opinion” about the level.

While Agung’s seismic activity has been on the decline, PVMBG has kept the volcano on level IV based on a number of other factors that indicate an eruption could still be on the horizon.

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Vulkaan Agung op Bali minder actief; dreigingsniveau omlaag

De dreiging van een uitbarsting van vulkaan Agung op Bali is afgenomen, hebben de Indonesische autoriteiten vastgesteld. Eind september ging men er nog vanuit dat de vulkaan ieder moment kon uitbarsten.

Ruim 130.000 mensen die in een straal van 12 kilometer om de vulkaan woonden, werden geėvacueerd en ook veel mensen die verder uit de buurt woonden pakten voor de zekerheid hun koffers.

Magma

De laatste dagen is de vulkaan veel minder actief. Aanvankelijk werden dagelijks zo'n 1000 bevingen geregistreerd. Dat zou er volgens vulkanologen op wijzen dat er magma omhoog kwam binnen de vulkaan. Inmiddels worden per dag 400 bevingen geteld.

De gevarenzone rond de vulkaan is nu verlaagd van 12 naar 7,5 kilometer, dus een deel van de geėvacueerden kan naar huis terugkeren. Wel krijgen ze de waarschuwing mee niet dichter in de buurt te komen van de krater, waar nog steeds rook uitkomt.

De Agung is met 3.031 meter de hoogste berg en vulkaan van Bali. De laatste uitbarsting was in 1963. Toen vielen er zo'n duizend doden.

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Eruption at Agung volcano, Bali, Aviation Color Code raised to Orange

A small-scale eruption started at Agung volcano, Bali at 09:05 UTC (17:05 WITA) on November 21, 2017, forcing authorities to raise the Aviation Color Code from Yellow to Orange.

The best estimate of the ash-cloud top is around 3 842 m (12 294 feet) above sea level. This is about 840 m (2 778 feet) above the crater. "Ash cloud is drifting to the southeast and may be higher than what can be clearly seen by ground observations. Eruption and ash emission continues," CVGHM said 09:39 UTC.

A small-scale eruption started at Agung volcano, Bali at 09:05 UTC (17:05 WITA) on November 21, 2017, forcing authorities to raise the Aviation Color Code from Yellow to Orange.

The best estimate of the ash-cloud top is around 3 842 m (12 294 feet) above sea level. This is about 840 m (2 778 feet) above the crater. "Ash cloud is drifting to the southeast and may be higher than what can be clearly seen by ground observations. Eruption and ash emission continues," CVGHM said 09:39 UTC.

Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, the spokesman of the national disaster agency, reminded residents not to enter the exclusion zone of 6 - 7.5 km (3.7 - 4.6 miles) around the crater and to stay calm

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100000 ordered to evacuate, fears for larger eruption
About 100,000 people near Bali's Mount Agung have been ordered to evacuate as officials fear a major eruption.Indonesian authorities have raised the state of alert to its highest level, and expanded the exclusion zone around the rumbling volcano.

The island's airport has now closed, leaving thousands stranded in the tourist hotspot.
Authorities say dark smoke and ash have been billowing up to 3,400m (11,150ft) above the mountain's summit.

Officials have warned residents to stay away from rock and debris flows known as lahars, which have been spotted flowing down from the mountain.

How close is it to a major eruption?

The National Board for Disaster Management raised the alert to level four from 06:00 local time (22:00 GMT Sunday) because of "the possibility and imminent risk of disaster".

The volcano was seen emitting "continuous ash puffs" occasionally accompanied by "explosive eruptions" and "weak booms" that could be heard 12km (7 miles) away from the summit.

"The rays of fire are increasingly observed at night. This indicates the potential for a larger eruption is imminent,

twitter:

janinekrippner twitterde op dinsdag 28-11-2017 om 09:05:46 Starting at 13:32 WITA, the largest seismic energy during this #Agung crisis has occurred. Currently, to produce th… https://t.co/YncNZ9YNKi reageer retweet

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Vliegveld van Bali dag langer dicht door vulkaanuitbarsting

Het vliegveld van Bali blijft nog 24 uur langer gesloten. Dat betekent dat er tot woensdagochtend 7.00 uur (lokale tijd) geen vluchten van en naar het Indonesische eiland vertrekken. Boosdoener is de as die vrijkomt uit de vulkaan Agung.

Een rapport van de lokale luchtverkeersleiding heeft aangetoond dat 'de routes van de vliegtuigen verstopt zitten met vulkaanas', meldt het ministerie van transport van Indonesiė. Vulkaanas is gevaarlijk, omdat het turbines van straalmotoren kan beschadigen, brandstof- en koelsystemen kan verstoppen en piloten het zicht kan belemmeren.

Het vliegveld van buureiland Lombok is weer geopend, nadat het een dag eerder ook was gesloten als gevolg van de vulkaanuitbarsting.