Indonesia’s Mount Semeru volcano has erupted, sending ash into the sky and triggering evacuations from the country’s main island of Java.
Authorities raised the volcano’s alert status to the highest level, meaning its activity had increased.
No injuries were reported, but around 2,000 people have been evacuated from the area around the volcano.
People have been urged to stay at least 8 kilometers (5 miles) away, as “hot avalanches” of lava fall from Semeru.
A spokesman for Indonesia’s Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) told JEE News that the increase in risk level from three to four also means that the threat threatens people’s homes.
A bridge that is being rebuilt after a previous eruption was badly damaged, the organization said.
The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) said volcanic ash accompanied by monsoon rains was falling on nearby villages and 1,969 people, including children and the elderly, had been evacuated.
At least six villages have been affected, he added.
Videos of the event showed the sky turning black as a large ash plume blocked sunlight.
Japan issued a tsunami warning for its southern islands after the eruption, but meteorologists said no sea changes were seen.
Mount Semeru in East Java province began erupting at 02:46 local time (19:46 GMT), officials said.
Indonesia sits on the Pacific “Ring of Fire” where tectonic plates collide, causing volcanic activity and earthquakes.
Semeru – also known as “The Great Mountain” – is the highest volcano in Java at 3,676m (12,060ft) and one of the most active. It last erupted exactly a year ago, killing at least 50 people and littering roads with mud and ash.
The eruption follows a series of earthquakes in the west of Java island, about 640 kilometers (400 miles) east of the Indonesian capital Jakarta, which killed more than 300 people last month.
