Indonesia, Volcano Eruption | featured news

Nearly 1,000 residents have fled two villages near an Indonesian volcano that has been erupting this week.

Frightened residents in a bustling city of 400,000 at the foot of Indonesia's rumbling volcano headed out of town Monday, cramming onto trains and buses and even rented vehicles to seek refuge with family and friends far away.

Indonesia s most volatile volcano sparked transportation chaos Sunday, with several international airlines canceling flights to the capital and neighboring Malaysia airlifting out hundreds of its citizens.

For 33 years, Maridjan spoke to Mount Merapi, believing he could appease its unpredictable spirits by throwing offerings of rice, clothes and chickens into the volcano's gaping crater.

Indonesia's Mount Merapi erupted on Thursday for the second time in a week, blasting vast plumes of ash into the sky, as the death toll from the initial eruption and a tsunami that hit remote western islands reached 377.

Rescuers battled rough seas Tuesday to reach remote Indonesian islands pounded by a 10-foot tsunami that swept away homes, killing at least 113 people... Also Tuesday, the country's most volatile volcano, Mount Merapi, 800 miles to the east, started to erupt at dusk as scientists warned that pressure building beneath its lava dome could trigger one of the most powerful blasts in years.

Thousands of Indonesians have been forced to flee after a volcano erupted on the island of Sumatra. Officials issued a red alert after Mount Sinabung began to spew lava shortly after midnight (1900 GMT). Smoke and ash reportedly shot 1500m into the air ...

One of Indonesia's most active volcanos erupted Friday, sending lava and a searing gas cloud tumbling down its slopes. At least four family members were swept away and feared dead, officials said, and several others were badly hurt.