Mt. Sinabung eruptions worsen, villagers want out

KARO. Hundreds of villagers affected by the ongoing eruptions from Mount Sinabung in Karo regency, North Sumatra, have demanded the local administration relocate them to safer areas.

On Tuesday evening, the volcano spewed out a record 10-kilometer high ash cloud, in what has been described as the strongest eruption since September.

A previous eruption on Monday had sent volcanic materials up to 8 km in the air.

Evacuees said Tuesday’s eruption was terrifying because it was followed by a very strong rumble and it discharged hot ash and molten lava, which traveled as far as the cities of Berastagi and Kabanjahe, located around 30 km away.

“Tuesday evening’s eruption was the strongest so far. I was terrified,” Naek Sembiring, one of the residents of Bekerah village that was displaced due to the recent volcanic activity, told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

Naek, who is also Bekerah village head, said that the entire villager had agreed they would not return to their homes despite the situation being declared “safe”.

“We fear we might die. Our village is nearest to Mt. Sinabung. In the event of an eruption where would we run to?” he said.

He is among the evacuees currently at the Indonesia Pentecostal Church command post in Simpang Empat district, as many as 64 displaced families (156 people) are there seeking refuge.

Naek claimed he, and his community, had been at the shelter since Mt. Sinabung’s recent bout of activity had started in September. Naek said residents of Suka Meriah village had similar worries.

“As many as 235 families [600 people] from Bekerah and Suka Meriah have asked for immediate evacuation,” said Naek.

“We have conveyed their wishes on to Coordinating People’s Welfare Minister Agung Laksono a few days ago when he was here,” he said, adding both villages were just 3-km away from Mt. Sinabung.

Naek said residents had proposed to be relocated to Jl. Jahe hamlet, located on the border of the Karo and Langkat regencies. According to him, the location is in state forest and around 8 km from Mt. Sinabung.

Separately, Karo regency administration spokesman Jhonson Tarigan confirmed that residents from Bekerah and Suka Meriah had requested relocation. “The proposal is still being studied,” Jhonson told the Post.

Based on data from the Karo regency administration on Wednesday, 6,211 individuals have been evacuated to 17 shelters across the four districts of Payung, Naman Teran, Simpang Empat and Kabanjahe. (Apriadi Gunawan/ The Jakarta Post)