T

he Banyumas Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) has imposed a ban on hiking Mount Slamet ahead of Independence Day on Aug. 17, as its status, which remains at alert, could endanger lives.

Banyumas BPBD head Prasetyo Budi said that in line with instructions from the Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Center (PVMBG), Mt Slamet'€™s status must be free of hiking activities as volcanic activities remained high.

'€œMt Slamet must be sterile within a radius of 2 kilometers from its peak. So, all hikers must be told that the tradition of commemorating Independence Day at the peak of Mt Slamet has been called off,'€ Prasetyo told the media in Purwokerto on Tuesday.

Hundreds of young people hike the mountain on the eve of Independence Day every year and fly the Indonesian flag the next morning on the 3,428-meter mountain.

The hikers arrive at a number of entrances to the mountain, such as in Banyumas, Purbalingga, Tegal and Pemalang.

'€œThe hikers usually number more than 300 people. Apart from local youths, they also come from major cities,'€ said Prasetyo.

He added the hiking ban was for the sake of the safety of climbers. '€œSo if anyone climbs the mountain without our approval and anything happens to them, we cannot be held responsible,'€ said Prasetyo.

Purbalingga resident Toto, 40, said he had celebrated Independence Day at the peak of the mountain dozens of times. '€œI'€™ve climbed Mt Slamet almost every year, but I don'€™t mind the ban as it is for safety reasons,'€ said Toto.

Separately, Mt Merapi, located on the border between Central Java and Yogyakarta, has been discharging lava to the west in the direction of the Lamat River in Magelang regency, Central Java. The lava flow has reached around 900 meters from the 2,900-meter volcano.

'€œThe discharge is due to a rock formation on the western side of the peak that has corroded and was triggered by tectonic quakes,'€ said Yogyakarta Geolological Disaster Technology Development and Investigation Center (BPPTKG)'€™s Mt Merapi section head, Kusdaryanto, on Tuesday.

He added that dry season had also caused the structure at the mountain peak to become unstable, causing the lava discharge.

Kusdaryanto said lava had discharged 20 times and seven small-scale tectonic quakes took place from July 31 until Aug. 6.

He emphasized that the status of the volcano remained normal.

'€œThere is no sign of an increase in volcanic activities yet,'€ he added.

Separately, Mt Merapi National Park administrative head Triatmojo said Mount Merapi was still safe for hiking. '€œThe lava flow is not directed at the hiking routes,'€ he added.

'€œBut, we recommend hiking only up to Pasar Bubar, not until the peak,'€ said Triatmojo.