MATARAM

An active volcano has erupted on Lombok, spewing ash and lava at least 1,500 metres into the sky, damaging crops but not threatening villagers, an official said on Sunday.

Mount Baru Jari on Bali’s eastern neighbour has been active for several months but the eruption, which started on Saturday, was “big,” Lombok’s volcano monitoring official Mutaharlin said.

“From Saturday evening to early Sunday, the volcano erupted three times and was accompanied by tremors. The first eruption spewed ash and lava 1,500 to 2,000 metres high,” he said.

Baru Jari is the so-called “baby volcano” of Mount Rinjani, a mini caldera below the main cone that sits in a lake.

Lava flowed into the lake, pushing its temperature to 35 degrees Celsius, up from 21 degrees Celsius, Mutaharlin said.

“The smoke had spread as far as 12 kilometres and dozens of acres of crop land were covered in ash,” he said.

“But the eruptions haven’t reached dangerous levels yet, so we’re not evacuating villagers,” he added.