Sinabung volcano (Sumatra): eruption news and activity updates

Sinabung volcano (Sumatra, Indonesia): volcanologists believe increased magma supply

According to a news article in the Indonesian press, volcanologists monitoring Sinabung believe that magma supply to the growing lava dome has recently increased.
This will likely result in more and larger pyroclastic flows that can threaten a number of villages that so far have been unharmed. These include Pasarpinter Gurkinayan, Simpang Sibintun, Perjumaan Batukejan, Jembatan Lau Benuken Tigapancur, Pejuman Tigabogor, Pentumbes, Jeraya, and Kutatengah on the SE slope.
The volcano is kepts at the highest alert status ("awas" or 4 out of 4) and an exclusion zone of 7 km is kept in place.
At the same time, only smaller collapse events and a small pyroclastic flow on 7 Aug have occurred during the past week. Most of the previous lava dome and its dangerous lobes clinging onto the steep upper slopes had been destroyed by the collapses in late July and the first days of August.
This apparent calm, however, could make things only worse, as it gives a false sense of safety. Indonesian volcanologist warn that there should be no activities inside the 7 km radius zone (something which is not being observed at all, however).
The evaluation of the situation comes from a drastic increase of certain kinds of earthquakes detected under the volcano, so called low-frequency events that are indicators of internal fluid movements. Their numbers rose from a few events per day to several hundred on Saturday - a clear sign that something had changed inside the volcano, likely a batch of new magma had started to move towards the vent.

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• Pergerakan Magma Sinabung Meningkat (Kompas)

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