PENANGGAL: In the wake of the deadly Semeru eruption on Indonesia's Java island, the entwined bodies of a mother and daughter encased in molten ash have come to symbolise what many living in the shadow of the volcano feel went wrong.
"There was no warning. If there had been, there wouldn't have been victims, right?" said Minah, of her cousin Rumini, who died clutching her elderly mother as their kitchen roof caved in. Like many Indonesians, they use only one name.
Nestled at the base of volcano, their village of Curah Kobokan was among the worst-hit when Semeru spectacularly erupted on Saturday, ejecting ash clouds and pyroclastic flows that killed 43 people and left dozens missing.
The eruption of Java's tallest mountain has raised questions about the effectiveness of Indonesia's disaster warning system, and the dangers of rebuilding on the volcano's fertile but precarious slopes.
Officials said some messages were sent to local administrators but acknowledged they did not result in an evacuation order, in part because the volcano's activity is hard to predict.
Warnings to evacuate are normally relayed by the national disaster mitigation agency, such as in 2017 when it ordered 100,000 people living near Bali's rumbling Mt Agung to immediately leave the danger zone https://www.reuters.com/article/us-indonesia-volcano-idUSKBN1DR036.
The national disaster mitigation agency did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for a comment.
In Javanese, the village's name Curah Kobokan means "pouring bowl", a reference to the river that snakes by it. Once a source of life, the river would also become the community's downfall.
When Semeru erupted, the river carried thick flows of lava and ash directly into Curah Kobokan, now a field of gray ash piled as high as the powerlines, a few triangular roofs jutting out of the newly formed disaster landscape.
Residents say the air grew blazing hot and pitch black in seconds. People screamed and fled in panic, some taking refuge in a prayer house, others huddled in a concrete drain.
Of eight residents Reuters interviewed, not one said they received warning of an impending eruption.
"If there had been warning, people would have evacuated. Instead in a matter of minutes, lava streamed down and a lot of people died," said 41-year-old Irawati, whose husband was knocked unconscious as they tried to escape.
'NO TIME TO RUN'
An archipelago of 270 million sitting atop the Pacific Ring of Fire, Indonesia is one of the most disaster-prone nations on earth. The devastation wreaked by Semeru can be ascribed to a deadly confluence of factors, for which no one wants to take the blame.
The head of Indonesia's geological agency, Eko Budi Lelono, says messages were sent to local officials warning of hot ash clouds. The river near Curah Kobokan, he said, was marked red on the map.
"In the future, we can't blame one another, but we need to synergise more," Eko says.
Dino Adalananto of the East Java disaster mitigation agency says the warnings were passed on to local resilience officers but there were no specific orders to evacuate. The head of Curah Kobokan could not be reached.
Experts say the nature of the eruption, a cave-in of the lava dome possibly triggered by external factors such as heavy rain, was also difficult to catch ahead of time.
"Whatever the actual trigger was, it was the instability of this lava dome at the summit that collapsed and those things are very hard to predict," said Heather Handley, a volcano scientist at Australia's Monash University.
Eruptions triggered by lava dome collapses account for about 6% of all volcanic eruptions, says Handley, with more research needed to understand the characteristics and causes.
Another causal factor for the tragedy is the reality of life on Semeru's slopes, where over the decades communities have become inured to volcanic activity, including the summit letting off steam.
As disaster officials survey the devastation, some 100,000 homes damaged or destroyed, there is growing talk about the danger of living so close to the mountain, with Indonesian President Joko Widodo saying at least 2,000 homes will be moved.
With 142 volcanoes, Indonesia has the largest population globally living in close range to a volcano, including 8.6 million within 10km (6.2 miles).
"What needs to be explained to people is the areas where the lava flows, our recommendation is don't live there anymore," said the geological agency's Eko.
"When they're there, there's no time to run."
Reuters
Fri Dec 10 2021
Musmin, 55, a local who lost his grandchild, rests on a rock while visiting the area that he believes is where his grandchild is buried following the Mount Semeru volcano eruption. - REUTERS/Willy Kurniawan
Ringgit dibuka rendah berbanding dolar AS
Ringgit dibuka rendah berbanding dolar AS hari ini kerana sentimen pasaran telah dipengaruhi oleh komen-komen daripada pegawai Rizab Persekutuan Amerika Syarikat.
KDNFC nafi peletakan jawatan Timbalan Presiden, CEO kerana isu gaji pemain
Kelantan Darul Naim FC (KDNFC) menafikan peletakan jawatan Timbalan Presiden KDNFC Datuk Zamri Ismail dan Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif Wan Mohd Zul Ikman adalah disebabkan isu pembayaran gaji pemain.
Bursa Malaysia dibuka rendah berikutan aktiviti ambil untung
Bursa Malaysia dibuka rendah hari ini berikutan aktiviti pengambilan untung susulan prestasi positifnya semalam serta menjejaki prestasi semalaman Wall Street.
Urus niaga mencurigakan, tiada keperluan mendesak jual pegangan MAHB - Radzi Jidin
Beliau mempersoalkan tindakan kerajaan yang dilihat terlalu gelojoh untuk mengeluarkan MAHB daripada Bursa Malaysia.
[TERKINI] PM sampaikan Perutusan Negara malam ini
Astro AWANI akan membawakan siaran langsung komprehensif bersama pakar bermula pukul 8.30 malam.
Dua pegawai penguat kuasa direman empat hari
Dua pegawai penguat kuasa sebuah badan beruniform direman empat hari bermula hari ini bagi membantu siasatan kes meminta dan menerima rasuah lebih RM23,000.
Thailand umum rancangan jadi hab penerbangan Asia Pasifik
Pihak Berkuasa Penerbangan Awam Thailand (CAAT) mengumumkan rancangan tiga peringkatnya untuk menjadi hab penerbangan di rantau ini. Ia bakal meningkatkan kapasiti pengembara udara kepada 270 juta orang setahun menjelang 2037 dan menjadi antara lima negara teratas dalam logistik udara di Asia-Pasifik .
Liga Super: JDT catat kehadiran penyokong tertinggi perlawanan kedua
JDT menerima kunjungan Negeri Sembilan di Stadium Sultan Ibrahim dan menyaksikan tuan rumah berjaya melakar kemenangan 3-1.
'Bahang' iklim amat ketara di Asia, apa tindakan kita?
Pakar dari Institut Meteorologi Royal Netherlands, Carolina Pereira Marghidan menekankan penyampaian maklumat lebih berkesan menggunakan teknologi terkini segera diguna pakai dalam mendepani isu perubahan iklim yang semakin merosot sehingga menjejaskan kesejahteraan manusia.
Ia susulan kajian saintis serta pakar kumpulan World Weather Attibution (WWA) baru-baru ini mendedahkan bahawa Asia jadi benua paling ketara menerima kesan perubahan iklim dengan purata suhu ekstrem 40 darjah celsius di kebanyakkan kawasan, manakala suhu tertinggi 46 darjah celsius direkodkan di India pada bulan April. Ayuh bertindak! Kita #JagaBumi
#HariBiodiversitiSedunia #AWANIGreenAction
Ia susulan kajian saintis serta pakar kumpulan World Weather Attibution (WWA) baru-baru ini mendedahkan bahawa Asia jadi benua paling ketara menerima kesan perubahan iklim dengan purata suhu ekstrem 40 darjah celsius di kebanyakkan kawasan, manakala suhu tertinggi 46 darjah celsius direkodkan di India pada bulan April. Ayuh bertindak! Kita #JagaBumi
#HariBiodiversitiSedunia #AWANIGreenAction
[KOLUMNIS] PRK KKB: UMNO ‘king maker’ senyap?
Di Kuala Kubu Baharu, UMNO dilihat sebagai penentu dan king maker dengan menghadiahkan satu blok undi, dalam jumlah yang besar.
Berita antarabangsa pilihan sepanjang hari ini
Antara pelbagai berita luar negara yang disiarkan di Astro AWANI, berikut adalah yang paling menjadi tumpuan sepanjang hari ini.
Fadillah, Elon Musk hadiri mesyuarat kepimpinan tertinggi Forum Air Dunia
Timbalan Perdana Menteri merangkap Menteri Peralihan Tenaga dan Transformasi Air, Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof menyertai pemimpin dunia di mesyuarat kepimpinan tertinggi di Forum Air Dunia (WWF) ke-10.
Elon Musk lancar Starlink di Indonesia
ELON Musk dan Menteri Kesihatan Indonesia Budi Gunadi Sadikin, telah melancarkan perkhidmatan Starlink di Indonesia semalam.
Terbuka Slovenia: Kebangkitan Justin Hoh bawa kepada kejuaraan
Pemain berusia 20 tahun itu berjaya menundukkan lawan dari Indonesia, Prahdiska Shujiwo.
Harimau Malaya bakal uji kekuatan Indonesia?
Harimau Malaya dijangkakan akan menguji kekuatan Indonesia dalam satu perlawanan persahabatan sebelum bermulanya saingan Piala ASEAN 2024 nanti.
Piala Asia: Thailand sekat impian Malaysia ke final
Tuan rumah berada di depan seawal minit ketujuh menerusi jaringan pukulan sudut penalti Todkaew Jiratchaya.
Jumlah korban banjir lahar dingin di Indonesia meningkat
Sebanyak 52 orang ditemukan terkorban dan 17 lagi dilaporkan hilang selepas banjir lahar dingin merosakkan rumah, bangunan dan kemudahan awam di wilayah Sumatera Barat, Indonesia.
Gunung berapi Ibu meletus, terbangkan abu sehingga 5 kilometer
Gunung berapi Ibu diklasifikasikan sebagai tahap bahaya ketiga, di bawah tahap tertinggi IV.
Bas terbalik di Jawa Barat ragut 11 nyawa, puluhan cedera
Sekurang-kurangnya 11 orang terbunuh dan puluhan cedera apabila bas persiaran yang dinaiki mereka terbalik di jalan berbukit di Subang, Jawa Barat.
Tentera Udara Malaysia, Indonesia akan laksanakan rondaan udara bersama
Tentera Udara Diraja Malaysia (TUDM) dan Tentera Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Udara (TNI AU) merancang untuk mengadakan rondaan udara bersama selama tiga hari dari 20 hingga 22 Mei ini.