Rumbling volcano in western Indonesia erupts again

Villagers watch as Mount Sinabung releases pyroclastic flow during an eruption in Tiga Kicat, North Sumatra, Indonesia, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2014. The 2,600-meter (8,530-foot) volcano has sporadically erupted since September. AP

KARO, Indonesia — Authorities have extended a danger zone around a rumbling volcano in western Indonesia after it spewed blistering gas farther than expected.

National Mitigation Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho says more than 50 eruptions on Saturday sent lava and searing gas tumbling out of Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra province down the southeastern slopes up to 5 kilometers (3 miles) away.

He said the volcano’s danger zone to the southeast was extended from five to seven kilometers (three to four miles) after the new eruption.

It was still spitting clouds of gas and lava as high as 4,000 meters (13,000 feet) on Sunday, but no casualties were reported.

More than 20,000 people have been evacuated from villages around the crater into several temporary shelters.

Sinabung has been erupting since September.