More than 120,000 people are fleeing a volcano which appears on the brink of erupting on the Indonesian island of Bali.
Scientists say a dramatic increase in the number of tremors indicates a potentially catastrophic eruption of Mount Agung is ‘imminent’.
Evacuees have been relocated across the island, taking shelter in temporary camps, sports centres and other public buildings.
More than 120,000 people are fleeing a volcano which appears on the brink of erupting on the Indonesian island of Bali. Pictured: Mount Agung volcano spews smoke
Evacuees have been relocated across the island, taking shelter in temporary camps, sports centres and other public buildings. Pictured: Villagers evacuate their livestock from Karangasem Regency in Bali
Scientists say a dramatic escalation in tremors indicates an eruption of Mount Agung is ‘imminent’. Pictured: Motorists ride past Mount Agung volcano
A woman carries her baby at an evacuation camp as she flees the volcano in Bali which is thought to be on the drink of eruption
Villagers rest at a temporary evacuation centre for people living near Mount Agung, Bali. They can be seen sleeping next to their belongings on matresses
Mount Agung where smoke was seen billowing from the active volcano and strong tremors were recorded in the area
An Indonesian solider takes a photo of Mount Agung as smoke billows out of the volcano which has been emitting strong tremors in the past few days
An exclusion zone around the mountain extends as far as 7.5 miles from the crater but people further from the volcano are also leaving.
Mount Agung, which dominates the landscape in the north-east of the island, last erupted in 1963, killing more than 1,100 people. The highest alert has been in place since Friday.
‘I would definitely be following the advice to stay outside the exclusion zone,’ said Heather Handley, an assistant earth sciences professor at Sydney’s Macquarie University. The increase in tremors suggests an eruption is ‘imminent,’ she added.
Meanwhile, a whole island of Vanuatu is being evacuated after a volcano there known as Manaro Voui began emitting ash and volcanic gas last weekend.
More than half people have already been moved to emergency shelters on the island of Ambae, which is in the north of the South Pacific Ocean nation.
Now the government is ordering all 10,000 residents to the nearby islands of Maewo, Pentecost and Santo amid the threat of an eruption and a strain on water supplies.
‘The evacuation of every family out of Ambae is a must,’ Vanuatu’s Council of Ministers said in a statement.
Both Indonesia and Vanuatu sit on the Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’, an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin
There are fears a major eruption may now occur, risking the lives of everyone on Ambae island. Pictured: Manaro Voui
The entire population of Ambae island in Vanuatu is being evacuated due to a volcano (pictured releasing smoke)
The government hopes to have completely evacuated the island by October 6 so residents avoid toxic volcanic gas, debris and acid rain.
Aid workers said Vanuatu will use government vessels and commercial fishing boats to transfer Ambae’s residents.
Although Ambae’s volcano has been active since 2005, the government has never previously needed to evacuate the island.
Even if Manaro Voui does not erupt, aid workers fear the spread of volcanic ash across the island will cause long-term harm to locals, who are almost entirely reliant on locally grown produce for food.
Vanuatu is an economically developing nation of more than 80 islands and home to 260,000 people.
People wait inside an evacuation centre in Klungkung regency, on the Indonesian resort island of Bali
More than 120,000 people are fleeing a volcano which appears on the brink of erupting on the Indonesian island of Bali. Pictured: Mount Agung which last erupted in 1963
Both Indonesia and Vanuatu sit on the Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’, an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.
Bali President Joko Widodo visited his island’s evacuation area on Tuesday, encouraging local residents to evacuate the area and seek safety in the shelters set up for those without homes.
‘While the government will continue to try to minimize the economic losses of the community, the most important priority is the safety of the people here,’ Widodo said.
‘So I ask all people around Mount Agung to follow instructions from the officials and minimize the impact of this volcano.’
The island says it is still safe for tourists to visit even though several have been evacuated, with some being woken in the dead of night and told to leave their hotels.
‘Pack your stuff’: Bali tourists are woken at midnight and evacuated
Tourists have told how they were woken up in the middle of the night and evacuated from their hotels in Bali over fears a huge volcano could erupt.
Rory Eastick, a tourist from Australia in Bali for a wedding, said he was woken up at 11.30pm by his Indonesian brother-in-law and told to evacuate his hotel immediately.
‘It was quite a worrying moment because it was at that time we realised everyone in our hotel had already left,’ he said.
Rory Eastick, a tourist from Newcastle in Bali for a wedding, said he was woken up at 11.30pm and told to evacuate his hotel immediately
Mr Eastick was staying in the diving town of Tulamben, less than 10km from Agung, after the wedding in the remote village of Munti Gunung.
Monique Correia had to flee, saying: ‘The lady from my hotel has just told us to all pack our stuff and evacuate and drive back to Kuta now.’
His friends and family shared their own tales of being forced out of their accommodation and fleeing to towns farther away.
‘Got back to our hotel in Tulamben and it was evacuated, no one there at all,’ Asher Boekeman wrote on Facebook.
Australian Monique Correia, said: ‘The lady from my hotel has just told us to all pack our stuff and evacuate and drive back to Kuta now.’
Pemerintah Provinsi Bali, Indonesia’s national disaster agency, urged holidaymakers to ‘continue visiting Bali’ in a letter claiming it was ‘business as usual’.
‘Bali tourism is safe. Do not spread the misleading news that Bali is not safe because Mount Agung is on the highest alert status. Please, come and visit Bali,’ it read.
The sudden activity of the Monaro volcano in Vanuatu shocked residents despite it being active since 2005
Vanuatu’s Meteorology and Geohazards Department said that villagers within 6.5 kilometers (4 miles) of the volcano face the biggest risk from airborne rocks and volcanic gas
Indonesian volcano erupts: Mount Sinabung spews ash and dust
While attention is focused on the potential imminent eruption of Mount Agung in Bali, another deadly Indonesian volcano has dramatically exploded.
Mount Sinabung, in northern Sumatra, spewed plumes of ash 2.5km into the air as it erupted at 1.23pm local time on Wednesday.
Thousands of villagers were evacuated from around the mountain, the most active of the country’s 130 active volcanoes, and warned to stay at least 7km away.
Authorities feared lava flows could cascade down the mountain and destroy homes, as has happened several times.
The volcano explodes so frequently, warning signs are permanently stationed around it warning against going near it.
Deadly Indonesian volcano Mount Sinabung spewed plumes of ash 2.5km into the air as it exploded
Vanuatu’s National Disaster Management Office said an emergency would be declared for the small island with the activity measure being raised to level four
About 10,000 people live on the island and those in the north and south are most vulnerable