Mount Ili Lewotolok Erupts Again Today, Ash Column Reaches 700 Meters

Mount Ili Lewotolok in East Nusa Tenggara erupted again on Saturday, February 24, 2024, at 3:48 PM WITA. In the last week, Mount Ili Lewotolok has erupted 10 times.

According to eruption information from the Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) via the MAGMA Indonesia application, the height of the ash column was observed to be approximately 700 meters above the peak or 2,123 meters above sea level.

The ash column was observed to be gray with thick intensity towards the northeast. The eruption was recorded on a seismograph with a maximum amplitude of 21.2 millimeters and a duration of 160 seconds.

According to the MAGMA Indonesia volcano activity report, the activity level of Mount Ili Lewotolok is at Level II (Alert). Observations of seismic activity on February 24, 2024, from 00.00 to 23.59 WITA showed 9 eruption quakes with amplitudes of 8.6-35.3 millimeters and durations of 36-174 seconds.

Then, there were 12 rockfall quakes with amplitudes of 1.8-3.3 mm and durations of 26-245 seconds, and 360 tremor quakes with amplitudes of 2.7-19.6 millimeters and durations of 40-296 seconds.

PVMBG advises residents around Mount Ili Lewotolok and visitors/climbers/tourists not to enter or carry out activities within a 2-kilometer radius of the center of Mount Ili Lewotolok's activity, and that the residents of Lamawolo, Lamatokan, and Jontona villages should always be aware of the potential dangers of lava collapses/landslides and pyroclastic flows from the east, south, and southeast of the peak/crater of Mount Ili Lewotolok.

During 2024, MAGMA Indonesia has recorded 261 volcanic eruptions/eruptions throughout Indonesia. Mount Marapi in West Sumatra had the most eruptions (72 eruptions), while Mount Ili Lewotolok erupted 20 times.