Indonesia volcano toll rises, many missing: survivor speaks of panic

Survivors of a deadly volcanic eruption in Indonesia began tackling the aftermath on Sunday as they recalled the panic the eruption caused.

Several villages were blanketed with falling ash when Mount Semeru in Lumajang district in East Java province spewed thick columns of ash more than 12,000 meters (40,000 feet) into the sky, and searing gas and lava flowed down its slopes after a sudden eruption Saturday triggered by heavy rains.

"Everyone was scared while running in panic because this eruption was much bigger than the eruption that occurred last year," said Supriyanto, a truck driver who had managed to escape with his vehicle from a sand quarry.

The death toll following the eruption has risen to 13, with seven people still missing, officials said as smoldering debris and thick mud hampered search efforts.

A thunderstorm and days of rain, which eroded and finally collapsed the lava dome atop the 3,676-meter (12,060-foot) Semeru mountain, triggered the eruption, said Eko Budi Lelono, who heads the geological survey center.

He said flows of gas and lava traveled up to 800 meters (2,624 feet) to a nearby river at least twice on Saturday.

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People were advised to stay 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) from the crater's mouth, the agency said.

Several hundred people were moved to temporary shelters or left for other safe areas, he said, adding that a power blackout hampered the evacuation.

The debris and lava mixed with rainfall formed thick mud that destroyed the main bridge connecting Lumajang and the neighboring district of Malang, as well as a smaller bridge.

Despite an increase in activity since Wednesday, Semeru's alert status had remained at the third highest of four levels since it began erupting last year, and Indonesia's Volcanology Center for Geological Hazard Mitigation did not raise it this week, Lelono said.

National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari said at least 13 villagers died from severe burns and 57 were hospitalized, including 16 in critical condition with burn injuries.

He said rescuers were still searching for seven residents and sand miners along a river in Curah Kobokan village who were reported missing.

Entire houses in the village were damaged by volcanic debris and more than 900 people fled to temporary government shelters, Muhari said.

Liswanto, the head of Semeru's monitoring post, said his office had informed the community and the miners that hot ash could tumble down from Semeru's crater at any time, after sensors picked up increased activity in the past week.

But some residents who fled to a government shelter near Lumajang district's head office said authorities did not convey any information to them about the volcano's activities.

Transportation Ministry spokesperson Adita Irawati said her office issued a notice Saturday for all airlines to avoid routes near the volcano.

She said flight operations are still running as scheduled and that authorities will continue to monitor the situation.

The Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre said the spread of volcanic ash from Mount Semeru was detected to the southwest moving at a speed of 50 knots.

Television reports showed people screaming and running under a huge ash cloud, their faces wet from rain mixed with volcanic dust.

The last time Semeru erupted, in January, there were no casualties.

Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 270 million people, is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity because it sits along the Pacific "Ring of Fire," a horseshoe-shaped series of fault lines.