Two volcanoes in Indonesia have erupted sending thousands fleeing and destroying entire crops.
Mount Sinabung first erupted Thursday in the early morning hours sending a plume of ash 23,000 feet into the air in the Karo region of North Sumatra. The mountain then erupted again just before noon with an ash plume that rose 16,400 feet.
Government officials rushed at least 5,500 residents away from the area.
Then today Mount Sinabung was the second Indonesia volcano to erupt in a span of hours. Mount Merapi exploded just before 5 a.m. local time send a plume of ash 6500 feet into the air. Hours later, Mount Sinabung erupted stronger than ever with an ash cloud rising 26,500 feet into the air.
The Indonesian Transportation Ministry has issued a statement to all airlines telling them to avoid the airspace surrounding the volcanoes because of the ash and their current instability.
The ash from the volcanoes has destroyed the crops of farmers surrounding the mountain who depend on their crops to live. A local farmer told the Jakarta Globe the losses to farmers in the region could end up in the billions. He said some of the farm land has been so damaged by the volcanoes they can no longer be used for farming.
Indonesia is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire.
Authorities in the Philippines’ Bohol province have raised the official death toll from last week’s 7.1 magnitude earthquake to 183 and the count of wounded to 583.
The massive quake destroyed over 8,600 homes in Quezon City.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said that landslides were reported throughout Bohol province and that outside Quezon City more than 8,500 homes were destroyed and over 26,000 were damaged.
The NDRRMC also said that many roads and bridges have suffered significant structural damage and many government buildings are unstable.
The earthquake has displaced more than 3.5 million people across six provinces.
The Philippines are directly above the Pacific Ring of Fire noted for its volcanic and earthquake activity.
Canada’s southern Pacific coast rattled Sunday with a moderate earthquake.
The 5.7 magnitude quake struck around 6:20 a.m. local time about 96 miles of Port Hardy on Vancouver Island. Continue reading →
Five people are dead after a major earthquake off the Solomon Islands created a tsunami. The 8.0 magnitude quake happened around 12:30 p.m. local time.
The five dead are four elderly people and one child. However, the director of nursing for Lata hospital said the death toll could very likely rise after assessing the final impact. Continue reading →
The Pacific “Ring of Fire” is doing its impression of Jerry Lee Lewis with a “whole lotta shakin’ going on” over the last day. Four earthquakes of a magnitude of 6 or greater shook three points on the “ring.”
The first struck in Chile with a magnitude 6.8 quake. The quake centered about 24 miles north of Vallenar and was felt as far away as the capital city of Santiago. One woman died of a heart attack that local officials attributed to stress brought on by the strong quake. Continue reading →
In an explosion heard three miles away, Indonesia’s Mount Lokon erupted on Sunday shooting a plume of deadly ash miles into the sky. Muddy rains have been falling in the surrounding areas since the eruption.
Scientists have been unable to detect the official height of the eruption because clouds are obscuring the mountain peak. Continue reading →
The Pacific Ring Of Fire had bookending earthquakes in the early morning. The first struck around 1 a.m. Central Time U.S. in the middle of the Gulf of California rocking awake residents of both Baja California and mainland Mexico.
The quake, centered approximately 63 miles southwest of Los Mochis, registered 6.0 on the Richter scale. Local officials reported that residents were panicking over the quake but that no major damage was reported. Continue reading →
A rise in Earthquakes in California and Alaska continued into a second day.
Alaska had three earthquakes strike in just over a two hour period. A 2.7 magnitude quake struck south of Seward, Alaska at 10:18. At 11:43, a 4.9 quake struck southeast of Whittier, Alaska with a second 3.0 magnitude quake hitting in the same area about 50 minutes later. Continue reading →
California and Alaska have been rocked with multiple earthquakes in the last 24 hours.
Yorba Linda, California was struck with three earthquakes in just over one hour. The first, a magnitude 4.5, struck at 9:33 am local time, less than a mile and a half from the city center. The second hit 18 minutes later and measured 3.4 on the Richter Scale. The quake centered 2½ miles from the city. Continue reading →
New Zealand’s Mount Tongariro erupted late Sunday night sending rocks and ash into the sky. Witnesses reported seeing “flame like explosions” and at least one witness reported seeing a new hole in the side of the mountain.
Mount Tongariro is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire. The volcano is made up of 12 separate cones. The current eruption happened at the Te Mari craters which had been dormant since 1897.
Residents of the area were ordered to stay inside and keep their doors and windows closed until given an all clear by government officials. Continue reading →
