There is no doubt that 2017 will be remembered as the year of natural disasters. After several hurricanes and earthquakes have inflicted immense damage to mankind, now we are seeing Bali get threatened by a potential volcano eruption.
Mount Agung Has Not Erupted In Decades
Around 145,000 people who live on these Indonesian islands of Bali have chosen to leave their homes. They only see danger and risk in remaining in the vicinity of Mount Agung, which is a volcano that has been exhibiting signs of eruption according to local scientist and officials.
This volcano which has an elevation of 9,944 feet happens to be the highest peak in all of Bali. The last time this peak erupted was in the 1960s, when it destroyed villages and killed around 1,700 people from the mudflows, the hot gas clouds, and lava ash and fragments.
The local authorities have been warning people as far away as 12 kilometers (or 7.5 miles), around the volcano and urging them vacate the area and seek safe shelter somewhere else.
Many of these people that have recently fled are nowhere to be found within this evacuation zone, thus, they have departed simply from the uncertainty and the risks that are apparent in the effected regions.
Local seismic meters are recording large increases in underground activity around the volcano. This was first observed in mid-September and actually resulted in a 4.3 magnitude earthquake recently. Satellites are also detecting new steam emissions as well as thermal areas that are located in the volcano’s center and crater, and the steam clouds have been seen plummeting above the volcano summit, as reported by the Indonesian Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation.
And the center explicitly urged and warned that the “exact date and time of future eruptions cannot be predicted.”
The authorities are saying that they have supplies that could last for maybe a month for supplying around 475 camps. The center spokesman was Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, and has been providing periodic updates in social media and particularly on Twitter.
Local Cattle Need Safe Shelter
Not only are people at risk, there is a lot of local livestock who is also in a precarious situation – and this includes approximately 30,000 cattle. Authorities are telling us that around 10,000 head have been move to safely already, but there is still another 20,000 who need to be evacuation and shelter. Authorities are urging local citizens to step forward and volunteer to provide these cattle with a warm bed and safe shelter. It is hopeful that many citizens will step forward and heed their request. Could these be some free steaks involved? Just sayin’ … Volunteers are entering villages to gather cats, dogs, pets, and other animals that have been left behind.
The Bali economy very heavily depends on tourism, and local leaders have been trying to convince others that this volcano is not something that should be considered a threat to tourists – as long as they remain away from the danger zone. Mount Agung is located in southern Bali and is around 35 miles northeast of Kuta, which is considered the main area for tourists.
“For our brothers and sisters from abroad, of course Bali is still safe,” said Made Mangku Pastika recently, who happens to be the governor of the island.
