According to authorities, at least 10 people have died as a result of a volcano eruption in eastern Indonesia on Monday.
Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki, located on Flores Island in East Nusa Tenggara province, erupted at 23: 57 local time, according to the Indonesian Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation ( PVMG).
Hadi Wijaya, a PVMG spokesperson, said fiery lava and rocks had hit the villages about 4km ( two miles ) from the crater, burning and damaging residents ‘ houses.
According to local officials, the volcano has affected seven villages.
PVMG has raised the status of the volcano to the highest alert level, warning that a 7km ( four-mile ) radius from the crater must be cleared.
Local official Heronimus Lamawuran, a local authority official, told Reuters:” We have started evacuating residents to other villages located about 20 kilometers ( 13 miles ) from the crater.”
Individuals covered in volcanic dust, stone showers, and homes fire, as well as the burnt aftereffects of the disturbance, are captured in video footage that eyewitnesses shared with BBC News.
A crisis company representative in Indonesia warned of upcoming flash floods and icy lava flows.
They added that the local authorities had declared a state of emergency for the next 58 time, which would allow the central government to assist 10, 000 impacted people.
Indonesia is perched high above several tectonic plates in a region known as the” Ring of Fire” in the Pacific, where there is high seismic activity.
Sunday’s eruption follows a series of eruptions in the region. In May, a volcano on the island of Halmahera, Mount Ibu, led to seven villages being evacuated.