Villages covered by Mt Soputan`s ashes

The 1,783-meter volcano sent up ashes 1,000 to 1,500 meters into the sky at 09.15 a.m. on Thursday.

"A number of villages in Southeast Minahasa district on which ashes had fallen have been put in a state of red alert," a spokesman for the Southeast Minahasa district administration, Ronny Suwarno, said here Thursday.

Ronny said the government would evacuate residents living on the volcano`s western slopes if the ashes continued to move in westerly direction.

"The government will keep monitoring the emission of ashes. If they show signs of increased activity we will evacuate the affected residents," he said.