JAKARTA, Sept. 22 (Xinhua) -- The number of people fleeing from dangerous areas rose to nearly 10,000 on Friday as a volcano could erupt at any time in Bali resort island of Indonesia, a senior official said here.
Continuing volcanic and tectonic tremors from Gunung Agung volcano in Karang Asem district have forced the evacuees living in the no-go zone to escape the area and take shelter in safer grounds, spokesman of national disaster management agency Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said.
"Monitoring on the activity of the volcano is being intensively undertaken. People are urged to be calm, but also alert," he told Xinhua in a text message.
Alert status of the Gunung Agung volcano has been raised to the second highest level following seismic activities.
Indonesia, an archipelagic nation with over 17,500 islands, has a total of 129 active volcanoes.
