Child of Krakatoa growls again

by mpress | November 8, 2007 at 07:08 am

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[q
url="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article2835629.ece"]MOUNT
KELUD Clouds of hot gas, molten lava and red-hot rocks spew out of Anak
Krakatau (Child of Krakatoa), as the volcano in the Sunda Strait
between Java and Sumatra, Indonesia, erupts again.

Meanwhile, at Mount Kelud, another volcano that is considered to be
one of the deadliest in Indonesia, workers were rushing to complete a
system of dams, fearing that an eruption could send a wave of
superheated mud, rock and ash surging down its slopes.

Volcanologists said that Mount Kelud, on Java, was on the verge of a
significant eruption, with highly pressurized magma forming under its
crater lake and smoke clouds shooting 1,000 metres (3,300ft) into the
sky. Cement dams up to 20 metres high and 6 metres thick have been
under construction for several months to channel the possible flows
away from villages. If the volcano erupts during construction, workers
will rush to a nearby elevated road for safety. The authorities have
tried to evacuate tens of thousands of villagers from the danger zone
since the mountain was put on high alert more than two weeks ago, but
many have refused to stay in government shelters and are continuing to
work their paddy fields or watch over their homes.[/q]

Anak Krakatau, built on the same lava plume as the Krakatoa volcano that killed tens of thousands in 1883, continued to spew lava, hot gas and rocks Thursday into the Sunda Strait between the Indonesian islands of Java and Sumatra.

Anak Krakatua, or "Child of Krakatoa" in the official Indonesian language, rose from the water in 1930 at the same spot where Krakatoa had blown itself apart.

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