(ANSA) - JAKARTA, 04 DEC - About 2,000 people have been evacuated from their homes on the Indonesian island of Java after the eruption of the volcano Mount Semeru which even caused a tsunami alarm in distant Japan.
The population of the area has been advised to stay at least five miles away from the crater.
The population fled the area by any means while the alarm was sounded by local authorities with bamboo drums and the sky darkened.
Emergency services reported "fire avalanches" caused by blocks of lava that broke away from the summit during the eruption and flowed towards the base of the volcano.
Authorities also asked residents to avoid a 13-kilometer area along a river southeast of Mount Semeru, towards which the volcanic ash cloud was drifting.
Videos shared with AFP by local relief group Irannala Rescue show a huge cloud rising from the crater and completely obscuring the sun and nearby ash-covered villages immersed in a dark haze.
The area was also hit today by the monsoon, with rainwater mixing with the ash, according to TV stations.
"Many people have started to descend" from the sides of the volcano, Thoriqul Haq, head of the Lumajang district administration, where the volcano is located, told Kompas TV.
Residents of the two villages most at risk fled on their own, a spokesman for the local rescue service added.
Shelters have been set up to house the displaced and the authorities have distributed masks to nearby residents to protect them from the
According to an AFP reporter, the internet and mobile phone networks were disrupted after the eruption.
(HANDLE).