PVMBG Urges People To Halt Activities Near Mount Agung

Pewarta : Reported by Nyoman Budiana and Edy M Yakub

PVMBG Urges People To Halt Activities Near Mount Agung

Asap mengepul di lereng Gunung Agung di Desa Rendang, Karangasem, Bali, Selasa (19/9). Antara Bali/Nyoman Budhiana/nym/2017. (edm)

Amlapura (Antara Bali) - The Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation (PVMBG) has called on residents and tourists to halt any activities within a 7.5-kilometer radius of the Mount Agung peak in Karangasem District of Bali.

"Taking a cue from the mountain`s eruption in 1963, huge pieces of rocks burst out from the volcano within the radius," Head of the PVMBG of the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry Gede Suantika stated here, Tuesday.

Hence, public activities should be stopped at the Pura Besakih or Besakih Temple, which is located within the radius, he noted.

The recommendation to stop public activities has covered the north, south, northwest, and southeast areas.

"The recommendation is based on the observation conducted by the Mt Agung monitoring post in Rendang Village that had recorded more than 400 volcanic tremors in the past 24 hours," he remarked.

On Monday at 9 p.m. local time, the PVMBG had increased the mountain`s alert status to level III.

The alert status for the 3,142-meter-high mountain was set based on visual and instrumental data analysis, considering its potential threats, Suantika emphasized.

"Since the last few days, the PVMBG has recorded an increase in volcanic tremors. This has indicated that its volcanic activities are unstable, and the possibility of an eruption has increased," he explained.

As of 8 p.m. local time on Monday, the agency had recorded two non-harmonic tremors, 18 shallow volcanic tremors, and 355 deep volcanic tremors.

Records since 1800 reveal that Mount Agung had experienced four mega eruptions respectively in 1908, 1823, 1843, and 1963. (WDY)
Editor: Edy M Yakub
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