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The Lokon volcano erupts near Tomohon on July 15, 2011. The Indonesian volcano erupted again Dec. 27. (Tengku/AFP/Getty Images)
One of Indonesia’s most active volcanoes erupted on Tuesday, sending clouds of ash and built-up gases into the air, reportedly causing locals to panic.
Mt. Lokon in Tomohon city in North Sulawesi province erupted three times, according to the Jakarta Post, citing the country’s Volcanology and Geology Disaster Mitigation Center.
The activity of the volcano has been on the upswing since Monday, with 23 deep volcanic tremors recorded, according to the Post. Around 40 shallow ones were also recorded.
“The eruption was heard as far as five kilometers [three miles] away, causing panic among villagers living close to the volcano,” Farid Bina, stationed at a volcano monitoring post, told AFP.
“Two villages with about 10,000 people each have been affected by the ash, which stopped later in the morning,” he said.
Mt. Lokon, a twin volcano with Mt. Empung, erupted last in July, forcing more than 5,000 villagers to flee. In 1991, the volcano erupted and killed a Swiss national.
The volcano, as well as many others in Indonesia and the Pacific Islands, is part of the “Ring of Fire” that encircles the Pacific Ocean, stretching from the western bottom of South America and goes up to North America before going down along East Asia.
