PMI volunteers on standby near Mt. Merapi
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Sat, 10/23/2010 1:54 PM
The Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) has posted 175 volunteers to
areas near Mount Merapi following to a recent alert status declared by the
Volcanic Technology Development and Research (BPPTK) Yogyakarta.
“We have to be ready whenever the disaster hits us. We have
to train local residents to remain calm and do what they need to do,” Klaten
regency PMI officer Ahmad Dahlar said on Friday as quoted by Kompas.com.
Since it was declared under alert status on Sept. 23,
2010, Mount Merapi has continued to show increasing volcanic activity.
According to head of the BPPTK Yogyakarta, Subandrio,
Merapi, which borders Yogyakarta and Central Java provinces, has been changing
form as a result of pressure from its magma fluid, which is seeking a way out.
