KARO, Indonesia — Indonesian rescuers searched for survivors in scorched villages and devastated farmlands Monday after a volcano erupted in clouds of searing ash and gas, killing seven and leaving others fighting life-threatening burns.
Witnesses have described sheer panic as waves of gas and fine rock were unleashed from Mount Sinabung on Sumatra island Saturday, consuming farmers trying to flee the slopes of the highly active volcano.
The fast-moving flows — reaching temperatures of up to 700 C (1,300 F) — incinerated homes and left livestock blackened and peeling.
Agustatius Sitepu, the head of the local military in Karo district where the volcano is situated, arrived to scenes of chaos as rescue crews raced to reach those left alive. “The villagers who managed to survive were running around in panic, trying to save themselves,” he said on Monday.
“There were only a few dozen. They were terrified. They were covered in ash.”
The eruptions were so violent that townships as far away as 12 km were covered in thick layers of ash, he added. Those worst affected were all farming within the “red zone” — an area four kilometers from Sinabung declared off limits by authorities — when the volcano erupted.
Six bodies were recovered Sunday, with three others rushed to hospital suffering horrific burns.
One of the victims succumbed to their wounds by nightfall, taking the official toll to seven, local disaster mitigation agency chief Nata Nail said on Monday. — AFP
