Translation: Run!!! Faster Run!!!
After a month or so of warnings and threats, spewing lava and black ash, Indonesian authorities finally raised the alert level to the highest because there have been constant lava flows that have caused hot gases.
With the raised alert levels come the compulsory evacuation of thousands living on the slopes of the volcano. prior to this evacuation has only been voluntary, and many were reluctant to leave crops, property and livestock untended. for the villagers, who were mostly farmers living off merapi's fertile soil, these were their lifelihood.
Despite the fact that 27, 000 locals in 3 villages could have been affected by the eruption, none were killed. large gas and ash clouds killed 60 in the 1994 eruption and 1,300 in 1930. perhaps this time around the death toll was kept under wraps by an affective and efficient mix of prediction and evacuation.
Prediction:
The Directorate of Volcanology and Geological hazard Mitigation runs the Merapi Volcano Observatory, hich is responsible for overseeing Merapi's activities and providing the authorities with warnings, and professional advise to mitigation. Using the usual set of predition tools, MVO would issue warnings based on a four level alert system.
Alert System:
1. Aktif Normal (Normal Activity)
2. Waspada Merapi (Attention)
3. Siaga Merapi (Standby)
4. Awas Merapi (Evacuation)
A series of sirens set up in Merapi's surrounding areas will be set off when the alert level is raised to "Awas" and the local government is responsible for the people's evacuation.
Hazard Map:
Merapi Hazard Map (Picture taken from: http://www.vsi.esdm.go.id/mvo/fig28.JPG )
Long before the 2006 eruption, the authorities came up with this Hazard Map picking out the areas that are most at risk and even showing what they are most in danger of. Such maps aim to give the people and the local government an understanding of their neighbour (Merapi lah!), such that they would know what they can expect and to work around this. For example the local government would know not the place any important infrastructure in the high hazard zones and would also be looking into areas in the low/ no hazard areas for possible evacuation centres.
Evacuation:
Of course, without evacuation, many MANY Indonesians would have been dead by now, even with the blaring sirens, fancy tools and jellyfish-maps. this time around, the authorities did pretty well in terms of organising evacuation camps and preparing evacuation trucks to bring the villages in masses to the evacaution camps. the only downfall here, was that merapi's eruption seemed to last forever, and people started to get more and more worried about their property and lifestock and had wanted to go home. some of those who had voluntarily left for the evacuation centres did return home but had to return to the evacuation centres when evacuation was made compulsory.
Villagers leaving for evacuation centres on lorries.
(Picture Taken from: http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/photospecials/graph/0515volcano/33.html)
A couple evacuating on their motorbike as Merapi shoots out her largest ash cloud yet.
(Picture taken from: http://www.guardian.co.uk/Guardian/gallery/image/0,,-1040329481742,00.html )
A farmer trying to salvage crops that have been buried and burned under tons of ash. (Picture taken from: http://www.guardian.co.uk/Guardian/gallery/image/0,,-1040329481742,00.html)
After a month or so of warnings and threats, spewing lava and black ash, Indonesian authorities finally raised the alert level to the highest because there have been constant lava flows that have caused hot gases.
With the raised alert levels come the compulsory evacuation of thousands living on the slopes of the volcano. prior to this evacuation has only been voluntary, and many were reluctant to leave crops, property and livestock untended. for the villagers, who were mostly farmers living off merapi's fertile soil, these were their lifelihood.
Despite the fact that 27, 000 locals in 3 villages could have been affected by the eruption, none were killed. large gas and ash clouds killed 60 in the 1994 eruption and 1,300 in 1930. perhaps this time around the death toll was kept under wraps by an affective and efficient mix of prediction and evacuation.
Prediction:
The Directorate of Volcanology and Geological hazard Mitigation runs the Merapi Volcano Observatory, hich is responsible for overseeing Merapi's activities and providing the authorities with warnings, and professional advise to mitigation. Using the usual set of predition tools, MVO would issue warnings based on a four level alert system.
Alert System:
1. Aktif Normal (Normal Activity)
2. Waspada Merapi (Attention)
3. Siaga Merapi (Standby)
4. Awas Merapi (Evacuation)
A series of sirens set up in Merapi's surrounding areas will be set off when the alert level is raised to "Awas" and the local government is responsible for the people's evacuation.
Hazard Map:
Merapi Hazard Map (Picture taken from: http://www.vsi.esdm.go.id/mvo/fig28.JPG )
Long before the 2006 eruption, the authorities came up with this Hazard Map picking out the areas that are most at risk and even showing what they are most in danger of. Such maps aim to give the people and the local government an understanding of their neighbour (Merapi lah!), such that they would know what they can expect and to work around this. For example the local government would know not the place any important infrastructure in the high hazard zones and would also be looking into areas in the low/ no hazard areas for possible evacuation centres.
Evacuation:
Of course, without evacuation, many MANY Indonesians would have been dead by now, even with the blaring sirens, fancy tools and jellyfish-maps. this time around, the authorities did pretty well in terms of organising evacuation camps and preparing evacuation trucks to bring the villages in masses to the evacaution camps. the only downfall here, was that merapi's eruption seemed to last forever, and people started to get more and more worried about their property and lifestock and had wanted to go home. some of those who had voluntarily left for the evacuation centres did return home but had to return to the evacuation centres when evacuation was made compulsory.
Villagers leaving for evacuation centres on lorries.
(Picture Taken from: http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/photospecials/graph/0515volcano/33.html)
A couple evacuating on their motorbike as Merapi shoots out her largest ash cloud yet.
(Picture taken from: http://www.guardian.co.uk/Guardian/gallery/image/0,,-1040329481742,00.html )
A farmer trying to salvage crops that have been buried and burned under tons of ash. (Picture taken from: http://www.guardian.co.uk/Guardian/gallery/image/0,,-1040329481742,00.html)
From this we see, that with the 2006 eruption, the local government's evacuation efforts together with well honned prediction methods helped saved thousands of lives, showing the importance of proper hazard management.
NB: on the 27th May, 2006, a 6.2 magnitude earthquake struck in yogyarkarta that killed over 5000 people. the jury is still out about whether the merapi eruption triggered the quake or if the eruption was simply a precursor to the quake.
NB: on the 27th May, 2006, a 6.2 magnitude earthquake struck in yogyarkarta that killed over 5000 people. the jury is still out about whether the merapi eruption triggered the quake or if the eruption was simply a precursor to the quake.
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