Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
THE DEATH TOLL from the eruption of Indonesia’s Mount Semeru volcano has risen to 34, the national disaster agency said.
On Saturday, the mountain on the island of Java ejected volcanic ash high into the sky and rained hot mud on villages as thousands of panicked people fled their homes.
The disaster swallowed entire homes and vehicles, blanketing villages such as Curah Kobokan in grey ash and leaving residents terrified of returning home.
“I’m traumatised, I asked my relatives if they were brave enough to go back to Curah Kobokan and they all said no, they’d rather sleep under a tree,” said Marzuki Suganda, a 30-year-old who works at a sand mine in the area.
When the eruption happened, I really thought I was going to die here.
Rescuers have been battling dangerous conditions since the deadly weekend eruption, searching for survivors and bodies in the volcanic debris, wrecked buildings and destroyed vehicles.
Search crews deployed dogs today to aid the operation.
“The latest update from the ground… [is] 34 people died, 17 are missing,” the disaster agency spokesman Abdul Muhari told AFP.
Almost 3,700 have been evacuated from the affected area, he added.
Dangerous rescue operation
Mt Semeru has remained active since Saturday, keeping emergency workers and area residents on edge.
There were three small eruptions today, each spewing ash around a kilometre into the sky, authorities said.
The task for rescuers was made more difficult by the instability of the volcanic debris.
“What we are afraid of is the ground being cold outside but still hot inside,” said police officer Imam Mukson Rido. “If it’s hot inside, we must get away.”
Officials have advised locals not to travel within five kilometres of Semeru’s crater, as the nearby air is highly polluted and could affect vulnerable groups.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo said during a trip to the area that the government will look into moving homes away because of the threat posed by the volcano.
“I hope after things calm down we can start both fixing infrastructures and think about the possibility of relocation from areas we believe to be dangerous,” he told Indonesia’s Metro TV.
“Earlier I got a report [that] there are around 2,000 houses that must be relocated.”
Indonesia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity, and the country has nearly 130 active volcanoes.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Builders with a conscience?… the council will make the rules to suit themselves…how many floodplain objections were ignored during the boom when brown envelopes were packeted!
@Winston Smith:
‘Builders with a conscience’
Their objection was based on the low number of units. Sounds like greed to me.
Exactly Daniel didn’t you detect the irony and spot the question mark???
@Winston Smith:
Sure, I’m fully in agreement with you Winston.
No story on the United States, Britain and Saudi Arabia dropping bombs on a funeral in Yemen yesterday that killed and injured 700 people or are war crimes only reported on when it is committed by our supposed enemies??
@Derek Durkin, UK are not involved in any of the activities in Yemen.
Where do you think the Saudis source a lot of their weapons?
The planed development includes a lot of green spaces which obviously not going down well with the backers
I visited a few new build developments in Dublin yesterday. Green spaces are a thing of the past, cobble lock parking, concrete footpaths, Tarmac roadways. Houses are tall terraced three stories, they are built right up to the footpath.
An earlier phase of one of the developments is fully occupied.
Cars fill every nook and cranny. Each corner and kerb has a car perched on top.
Many of the homes appear to be buy to let.
Planning departments are granting permission for 1.5 parking spaces in 4 bedroom houses.
Two houses in one of those appeared on Daft the other day as buy to let.
If I want to enjoy battles over parking, bins, bicycle parking, I can enjoy it in my current apartment.
Buy shares in NCPS as they are getting more contracts from management companies while we build higher density homes.
@Mossy Phelan: It goes to show that not all planning departments sing off the same hymn-sheet where developers are concerned. Leaving a mess in one county before moving off to another is fair game it seems.
The plan looks dense enough to me. My village was ruined by high density badly planned estates which weren’t even finished. The government could have had a sustainable industry, steady stream of housing and construction jobs if planning was managed nationally instead of control resting at the councils. It’s a disgrace how the country’s been blighted by greedy, bad planning and now they speak of a housing shortage…only in Ireland…
Ireland’s scenery has been destroyed by ugly bungalows and McMansions built all over the place.
So should we all live in urbanised apartment blocks Eamon??? If people are looking to build on their own land in an area they are from I firmly believe they should be allowed do so once they meet planning regulations
Ireland’s scenery has been destroued by all these humans who annoyingly insist on having somewhere to live.
@Neal not Neil:
Turn the spell check back on
Gary, fine if you want to build a house in the middle of a remote field but then don’t come along later and moan about poor transportation, no broadband, and how you want the postman to talk to you when you’re old.
@Barry Davidson:
Nobody in the country moans about poor transportation, they accept there is none and make their own arrangements. They are fully entitled to moan about increases in Motor Tax & Fuel Prices, just as anybody living in an Urban area is entitled to do so about Bus Fares and Train Ticket prices.
Irish buliders at their best…
The model in holland and germany works but is unpalatable in ireland. You must live in a city town or village umless you are actively farming the land. Their approach has to do with cost efficiency, infrastructure costs, and provision of services-hosptials, doctor clinics, council services, schools/town busses/broadband/electricity/gas/water/sewage/rubbish collection & re-cycling. The local council in your town provides you with ur driving license and paspport as well as providing a host of other services. The modest local council tax ensures provision of cycling lanes, footpaths, roads. Each town has an area sectioned off for a park for walking and extensive sport facilities. If you look at the layout of Alphen aan den Rijn in holland its a text book example of how to layout a town. I know this all sounds unpalatable in ireland but it works. I very much enjoy the countryside and head out every weekend but ive chosen to live in a town for convenience and im too busy during the week to enjoy the great outdoors. I know this model doesn’t suit everyone and we have an agricultural background in this country as opposed to industrial nations like the example discused. Just thought I’d share my own experiences.
@John Bennett: The existence of McMansions in “the country” is utterly irrelevant to this story.
@gregory: Gergory, the trend toward living in urban areas is well established in Ireland.
The real problem is that most of the built environment in Ireland is just tat, only recently has their been a focus on quality construction and good quality windows and doors.
How can you blame those who choose to build one off housing, when the alternative was to pay more for rubbish quality.
Dr Frankingombeen..the celtic tiger….it’s alive, it’s alive I tell you..we have brought it back to life….
Very congested area as it is…
have your say