Several volcanoes show increased activity across Indonesia

Indonesia, which lies on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", has over 120 active volcanoes.

13 Mar 2026 07:16am

This handout photo taken and released on August 1, 2025 by Indonesia's Geological Agency shows Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki spewing lava and volcanic ash up to approximately 10 kilometres high during its eruption as observed from the monitoring post in East Flores, in East Nusa Tenggara province. Photo by Indonesia's Geological Agency/AFP FILE PIX

JAKARTA - Several volcanoes in Indonesia have shown increased activity in recent days, with eruptions reported and authorities urging residents to remain alert, according to Xinhua.

Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki in East Flores, East Nusa Tenggara province, erupted for nearly two minutes on Wednesday morning, with ash rising about 800 metres above the summit, local monitoring officials said.

Earlier on the same day, Mount Semeru in East Java erupted again, marking its 32nd eruption in the past week and sending ash about 400 metres above the summit.

A man looks at a pyroclastic flow during the eruption of Mount Semeru in Lumajang, East Java, on November 19, 2025. Photo by Agus Harianto/AFP FILE PIX

Mount Merapi in Central Java also remained active on Wednesday, with incandescent lava flows reaching up to 1.8 kilometres towards the Sat River.

"Based on our monitoring, the magma supply is still ongoing, and this could trigger pyroclastic flows," Agus Budi Santoso, head of the Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation's Merapi monitoring office, told Xinhua on Wednesday.