Indonesia’s Merapi volcano ready to rumble

Gunung Merapi in Indonesia has been spewing thick smoke for some time now and it is expected to erupt at the end of the month.

However local villagers are ignoring government warnings of the approaching eruption. They would rather stay put in their homes. Some village elders are saying they would rather die in their own land.

The government has thus far relocated more than 600 people from the restive volcano. The official population on the mountain areas is at around 14,000.

Following are some facts about the volcano:

• Gunung Merapi, or Fiery Mountain, located in the southern area of central Java, overlooking the ancient royal city of Yogyakarta, is the most active volcano in Indonesia.
• Merapi has been witnessing small eruptions every two or three years, bigger ones every 10-15 years, and very large ones every 50-60 years.
• The biggest eruptions occurred in 1006, 1786, 1822, 1872 and 1930. The eruption of 1006 was so bad that the existing Hindu kingdom was apparently destroyed while in 1930 more than 1,300 people were killed. The 1994 eruption claimed more than 60 lives.

Lets hope these villagers come to their senses sooner before anything fatal happens.