Villagers walk as they are evacuated from their homes on the slope of Mount Kelud in Kediri, East Java, Indonesia, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2014. Indonesia’s mount Kelud in densely populated Java Island has erupted, forcing the evacuation of thousands of people.JAKARTA, Indonesia – Thousands of people were evacuated after Mount Kelud on densely populated Java island erupted, spewing ash and raining gravel, an official said early Friday.
Muhammad Hendrasto, head of the country’s volcano monitoring agency, said the mountain in Kediri regency in East Java province erupted late Thursday, about 90 minutes after authorities raised its status to the highest level. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
Hendrasto urged about 200,000 people living in 36 villages within 10 kilometers (6 miles) of the crater to evacuate.
“It is spewing lava right now while gravel rain has fallen in some areas,” Hendrasto said. “We worry that the gravel rain can endanger people who are evacuating.”
A series of huge blasts unleashed stones and gravel, causing panic among villagers who immediately fled to safer areas.