Indonesia: Mount Ibu Erupts Again, Sending Volcanic Ash Seven Kilometers into the Sky

Mount Ibu eruption on May 15, 2024. (Photo: Antara)

Mount Ibu, located in the northwest of Halmahera Island, West Halmahera Regency, North Maluku Province, erupted, sending volcanic ash seven kilometers into the sky, today on Sunday June 2, 2024.

Axl Roeroe, an officer at the Mount Ibu Observation Post, reported that the eruption occurred at 12:45 Eastern Indonesia Time today, producing a thick column of gray to black ash directed westward.

"The eruption was recorded on the seismogram with a maximum amplitude of 28 millimeters and a duration of 373 seconds," Roeroe stated in a report received by Antara in Jakarta.

Read also: Indonesia: Mount Semeru in East Java Erupts Eight Times in a Single Morning

Since Mount Ibu was declared on high alert on May 16, 2024, today's ash cloud is the largest observed so far.

On May 15, 2024, Mount Ibu erupted sending a column of volcanic ash up to five kilometers. In response to the eruption, more than 2,000 residents from West Halmahera Regency have been evacuated to safer areas. No casualties have been reported.

Mount Ibu is a stratovolcano with a summit height of 1,340 meters above sea level. Administratively, it falls within the Ibu Subdistrict, West Halmahera Regency, North Maluku Province, Indonesia.

The Geological Agency issued a Volcano Observation Notice for Aviation (VONA) with a red code for the North Maluku area. The VONA service alerts pilots, operators, air traffic managers, and meteorologists about volcanic ash distribution to ensure aviation safety.

The Geological Agency advises the public to avoid activities within a four-kilometer radius and up to seven kilometers in the northern sector from the active crater of Mount Ibu.

The Geological Agency conducts visual and instrumental observations from the volcano observation post located in Gam Ici Village, Ibu Subdistrict, West Halmahera Regency, North Maluku.