Safety fence ,dangerous gasses no deterrent for visitors to Kelud

ID Nugroho ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Kediri, East Java   |  Fri, 05/16/2008 12:51 PM  |  Lifestyle

Despite a safety fence closing off Mount Kelud’s summit and warnings to remain one kilometer from the danger zone, people are still visiting the area to witness the volcano’s activities up close

A mass of volcanic rocks at the summit of Mount Kelud, which is belching white smoke and giving off the acrid stench of sulfur, has become a magnet for those wishing to see the natural phenomenon up close.

A new lava dome 1,731 meters above sea level, comprising thousands of tons of rock fresh from the earth's belly, can be seen atop Mount Kelud; increasing the volcano's height to almost equal that of the larger, surrounding mountain tops.

The dome first appeared last October at a time when the volcano, which is in the East Java regencies of Kediri, Blitar and Malang, suddenly became more active. Tectonic movements, earthquakes and tremors answered back and forth; water in the crater's lake, which is usually placid, began to bubble.

The usually bustling tourist stop at the foot of Mount Kelud has been virtually deserted since the volcano’s activities increased in October last year. Many vendors have left the area to set up shop elsewhere.

Local residents living on the mountain's slopes were jolted. Some went into panic mode and searched for a safer place to stay, while others remained in their homes, believing the signs of nature had yet to indicate that Mount Kelud was ready to explode.

At that time, vulcanologists declared a red alert and determined a 10-kilometer "safe distance" from the volcano's summit.

The vulcanologists, it turns out, made a correct call; the increased activity was the beginning of an evolving eruption that would gradually push out dangerous, underground materials.

"There were two explosions that threw materials into the air, and other periodic eruptions that pushed materials to the surface more slowly. That's what happened at Mount Kelud in 2007; it was a contained eruption," Choirul Huda, head of the Mount Kelud monitoring post, told The Jakarta Post.

In recorded history, Mount Kelud has exploded nine times; each time more violent. The first recorded explosions occurred between the years 1000 and 1864. The total number of victims from an eruption on May 20, 1919, was around 5,160. On April 24, 1956, the death toll from an eruption reached 210, and an explosion in 1990 killed 34.

Over the last eight months, gradual eruptions at Mount Kelud have made the crater lake, which formed in 1920, disappear. The lake has been replaced by a mass of underground material reaching a height of 250 meters above the lake base.

The erupted materials include solid rocks mixed with a variety of minerals and natural gases. A high concentration of carbon dioxide is believed to be the most dangerous gas expelled, followed by sulfur.

"Mount Kelud is dangerous now," Choirul told the Post. The greatest danger, he said, came from gases originating from deep inside the bowels of the earth. "Carbon dioxide is a dangerous gas and like other gasses can be inhaled by humans and cause death," he said.

The ruins of the lava dome, he added, had also created a large quantity of rocky rubble that could be hazardous. "For that reason, the vulcanologists have asked the tourism department to close the area to visitors," said Choirul.

A 2.5-meter-high steel and wire fence with a padlocked gate only accessible to officials -- located one kilometer below the summit -- has been erected to keep people away from danger.

Since the installation of the fence, the number of tourists to the area has decreased. Souvenir shops and food stalls at the foot of the mountain, which is popular with hikers, have been closed. Some stall owners have opened their businesses elsewhere, while others have set up shop along the boundary fence.

"Because we can't sell around the gate, my friends and I have opened a shop here," said Bu Tomo, a snack vendor.

However, visitors still turn up -- the irony of the alert warning and the dangers associated with proximity to Mount Kelud haven't stopped those determined to make a trip to the area.

"No-one is supposed to go to the top of Kelud, but if you want to keep going to the summit you can pass that road," said a carpark attendant, pointing to a series of narrow steps along the side of the fence.

The steps, outlined by sweet potato leaves, take hikers directly to the top of Mount Kelud; a distance of around 800 meters. After that the track goes through a tunnel created from a split in the top of Mount Kelud.

Even though the area is suppose to be closed, visitors to the area are not turned away. On the day the Post visited the area, a car with a red number plate (indicating government ownership) full of passengers approached the boundary fence where a guard opened the gate. It was followed by a police patrol car carrying a family.

Kislan, the subdistrict head of a village in Jombang Regency, East Java, said he came to visit the area with his 10-year-old son because he didn't believe Mount Kelud was dangerous.

"My son wasn't afraid and I also wasn't afraid," he said after viewing the lava dome up close

The Jakarta Post observed many visitors, accompanied by their family members and children, trek up to the lava dome.

"We weren't afraid, we only wanted to know what happened," said a man who had come to the area with his wife and their two children, both under the age of three.

Many visitors were determined to get closer, descending the steps until they came only a few meters from the lava dome.

Choirul said several people had vomited after inhaling dangerous gasses omitted by Mount Kelud.

"We only remind them of the dangers ... if something happens, we are not responsible."

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