Indonesian Volcano Erupts, Mt. Sinabung Prompts 1,300 to Evacuate

Indonesia's Mt. Sinabung erupted Sunday afternoon, billowing ash more than 4 miles into the air and prompting the evacuation of nearly 1,300 people from villages near the active volcano crater in the Karo plateau region of Northern Sumatra, about 1,200 miles from the capital Jakarta.

No injuries or deaths have been reported, however the Jakarta Post said the evacuation zone may expand as more villagers living within 3 kilometers (2 miles) of the crater are preparing to evacuate.

"As many as 1,293 residents from Mardinding and Sukameriah villages have been evacuated due to an increase in seismic activities of the volcano. The figure is likely to increase as more residents from three villages -- Bekerah, Simacem and Sukameriah -- are prepared to evacuate to Namanteran," the Jakarta Post reported.

Earlier Sunday authorities raised the activity level of Mt. Sinabung to the second-highest position from "caution" to "alert" due to increased seismic activity.

"Based on volcano-monitoring data, it was found that increased seismic activities had occurred in Mt Sinabung while it continued to spew ash rising kilometers into the air," said National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, acording to the Jakarta Post.

Evacuation procedures began as the danger level raised, with people living in villages within 3 kilometers of the volcano's crater being told to evacuate.

"The evacuation aims to protect the local residents from the effects caused by the increased volcanic activities of Mt.Sinabung," Sutopo said after the volcano spewed ash 23,000 feet (7,000 meters) in the air and boomed with ominous, thundering sounds for 10 minutes Sunday morning.

The volcano, once considered inactive, appears to be awake.

Prior to August 2010, Mt. Sinabung was quiet for nearly a century, but a series of eruptions over two months brought it back to life then. The volcano also erupted again in September of this year, prompting the evacuation of 14,000 people, and again in late October. No casualties have been reported in any of the recent eruptions.