JAKARTA, April 17 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia has issued a flight warning as Mount Semeru in the country's main Java Island spewed a column of hot clouds two kilometers to the sky from the crater on Friday, the National Volcanology Agency said.
The volcano started eruption a day earlier, belching ashes and smokes 600 meters high, the agency disclosed in a statement.
The agency has issued a volcano observatory notice for aviation (VONA) since Thursday with the level of the second highest, orange code, suggesting that the eruption endanger flights and planes be required to avoid air spaces around the hot clouds.
"A new VONA will be issued if conditions change significantly," the agency said.
The agency has reminded people of possible rains of ashes, rolling hot rocks from the crater in the radius of one kilometer, and sliding of hot clouds by up to four kilometers to the south and southeast of the crater as further eruptions are possible.
During heavy downpours, the agency warned residents of possible lava floods.
The 3,676 meter high volcano situated in East Java province is one of Indonesia's 129 active ones. Indonesia, a vast archipelagic nation, is prone to volcanic activities and earthquakes as it lies along the Pacific Ring of Fire. Enditem
