Mount Egon on heightened alert status

KUPANG, East Nusa Tenggara: The Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Center (PVMBG) has raised the status of Mount Egon in Sikka regency, East Nusa Tenggara, to the second-highest alert due to increasing volcanic activity.

"We can visually observe ash being spewn. The height of the ejecta reached 25 meters from the crater surface," volcano observation staff Yos Suryanto said via telephone Friday.

"We have informed the regency administration of the heightened level and requested they inform the public."

Despite the new alert status, imposed since Wednesday, he said area residents were still going about their activities as usual.

"Maybe the residents are used to this situation since the mountain has erupted twice in five years," he said.

The 1,703-meter high volcano is located 55 kilometers from Sikka's capital Maumere.

"In the past week, there have been 26-28 small quakes," Suryanto said. - JP