MAUMERE, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia’s National Disaster Management Agency said Monday that at least 10 people have died as a series of volcanic eruptions widens on the remote island of Flores.
The eruption at Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki around midnight spewed thick brownish ash as high as 2,000 meters (6,500 feet) into the air and hot ashes hit several villages, burning down houses including a convent of Catholic nuns, said Firman Yosef, an official at the Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki monitoring post.
He said volcanic material was thrown up to 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) from its crater, blanketing nearby villages and towns with tons of volcanic debris and forcing residents to flee.
Rescuers were still searching for more bodies buried under collapsed houses, said Abdul Muhari, the National Disaster Management Agency’s spokesperson. Muhari said all the bodies, including a child, were found with a 4-kilometer (2.4 mile) radius of the crater.
He said at least 10,000 people have been affected by the eruption in six villages of Wulanggitang District, and four villages in Ile Bura district. Some have fled to relatives’ houses while the local government is readying schools to use as temporary shelters.
The country’s volcano monitoring agency increased the volcano’s alert status to the highest level and more than doubled the exclusion zone to a 7-kilometer (4.3-mile) radius after midnight on Monday as eruptions became more frequent.
A nun in Hokeng village died and another was missing, said Agusta Palma, the head of the Saint Gabriel Foundation that oversees convents on the majority-Catholic island.
“Our nuns ran out in panic under a rain of volcanic ash in the darkness,” Palma said.
Photos and videos circulated on social media showed tons of volcanic debris covering houses up to their rooftops in villages like Hokeng, where hot volcanic material set fire to houses.
Lewotobi Laki-laki is one of a pair of stratovolcanoes in the East Flores district of East Nusa Tenggara province known locally as the husband — “Laki-laki” means man — and wife mountains. Its mate is Lewotobi Perempuan, or woman.
About 6,500 people were evacuated in January after Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki began erupting, spewing thick clouds and forcing the government to close the island's Frans Seda Airport. No casualties or major damage were reported, but the airport has remained closed since then due to seismic activity.
In a video conference on Monday, Muhammad Wafid, the head of Geology Agency at the Energy and Mineral Resources ministry said there was a different character between January’s eruption and Monday’s eruption due to a blockage of magma in the crater, which reduced detectible seismic activity while building up pressure.
“The eruptions that occurred since Friday were due to the accumulation of hidden energy,” Wafid said.
It’s Indonesia’s second volcanic eruption in as many weeks. West Sumatra province’s Mount Marapi, one of the country’s most active volcanos, erupted on Oct. 27, spewing thick columns of ash at least three times and blanketing nearby villages with debris, but no casualties were reported.
Associated Press writers Niniek Karmini and Edna Tarigan in Jakarta contributed to this report.
In this photo made available by Indonesia's Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Agency (PVMBG) of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, the sky glows from the eruption of Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki early Monday, Nov. 4, 2024, in East Flores, Indonesia. (PVMBG via AP)
FILE - Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki spews volcanic materials from its crater during an eruption in East Flores, Indonesia, Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Andre Kriting, File)
New York at (3-13) at Philadelphia (13-3)
Sunday, 1 p.m., EST, CBS
BetMGM NFL Odds: Eagles by 3 1/2
Against the spread: New York 4-11-1; Philadelphia 10-6
Series record: Eagles lead 91-86-2
Last meeting: Saquon Barkley rushed for 176 yards to lead Philadelphia to a 28-3 victory in New York on Oct. 20.
Last week: Giants defeated the Colts 45-33. Eagles routed the Cowboys 41-7.
Giants offense: overall (29), rush (22), pass (27), scoring (31).
Giants defense: overall (24), rush (31), pass (10), scoring (23).
Eagles offense: overall (6), rush (1), pass (30), scoring (7).
Eagles defense: overall (1), rush (10), pass (1), scoring (T-6).
Turnover differential: Giants: minus-7; Eagles: plus-10.
Wide receiver Malik Nabers. The No. 6 overall pick has 104 catches for 1,140 yards and 6 touchdowns and is four receptions shy of topping Steve Smith’s franchise mark of 107 catches in a season, set in 2009.
QB Tanner McKee. The third-string quarterback could start with Jalen Hurts and backup Kenny Pickett sidelined by injuries. McKee threw two touchdown passes and put the finishing touches on a rout against Dallas.
If Barkley played, it would have been New York’s rushing defense vs. Barkley. The Giants are second from the bottom in the NFL by allowing an average of 141.6 rushing yards per game. In Barkley’s place, the Giants rushing defense will be contending with Kenneth Gainwell.
Giants: Defensive lineman Armon Watts (knee) was injured in the first half against the Colts last week and didn’t return. He underwent surgery and won’t play on Sunday, coach Brian Daboll said on Wednesday. C John Michael Schmitz (ankle) and LB Micah McFadden (neck) did not play against Indianapolis. Neither practiced on Wednesday. RT Evan Neal (rib/hip) also didn’t practice on Wednesday.
Eagles: QB Jalen Hurts (concussion) did not play last week and missed the final three quarters against Washington the week before after getting injured early against the Commanders. The Eagles held a walkthrough on Wednesday rather than a full practice, but Hurts would not have participated had it been a full practice. Either way, he likely will not play this week to heal up for the playoffs. TE Dallas Goedert (knee), out since Dec. 1 and LB Nakobe Dean (abdominal), who missed last week’s game against Dallas, would have been full participants on Wednesday if the Eagles held a full practice rather than a walkthrough. Many starters either didn’t participate on Wednesday because of rest and several others were limited participants.
The Eagles are NFC East champions for the second time in three seasons. The Giants finished last in the division for the second time in the past four. New York lost the inside track for the top pick in the draft by beating the Colts last week.
Giants QB Drew Lock passed for 309 yards and four touchdowns without an interception and ran for a 5-yard score in the win over the Colts that snapped a 10-game losing streak. … The victory over Indianapolis kept the Giants from becoming the first team to go 0-9 at home, but also knocked them out of control of the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming draft. … New York had six plays of 30 or more yards against Indianapolis. … Ihmir Smith-Marsette returned a kickoff 100 yards for a score last Sunday. … WR Malik Nabers has 104 catches for 1,140 yards and 6 touchdowns and is four receptions shy of topping Steve Smith’s franchise mark of 107 catches in a season, set in 2009. ... Philadelphia is locked into the No. 2 seed in the NFC and will host either Washington or Green Bay on January 11, 12 or 13 in a wild-card game. If Washington loses Sunday to Dallas and Green Bay beats Chicago, the Commanders are headed to Philadelphia. If the Commanders win, the Packers are the No. 7 seed and play the Eagles. … Philadelphia needs 35 points to eclipse the club record of 477, set in 2022. … Brown joined Mike Quick (1983–85) as Eagles receivers to reach 1,000-plus receiving yards in three straight seasons last week. Brown stands at 1,079 yards and has surpassed 1,000 in each of the past three seasons. … Zack Baun has a career-high 150 tackles, which ranks third in the NFL. … C.J. Gardner-Johnson has four interceptions in the past four games.
For those still playing in fantasy leagues, Nabers could have another big game to close out his stellar rookie season.
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
New York Giants quarterback Drew Lock (2) gets past Indianapolis Colts linebacker E.J. Speed (45) to score a touchdown on a 5-yard run in the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Tanner McKee (16) reacts after throwing a touchdown pass to wide receiver DeVonta Smith during the second half of an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
