- Mount Sinabung in Indonesia erupted violently last week, killing sixteen people and forcing thousands from homes
- Volcano has been erupting sporadically since September, leaving the landscape barren and ash-covered
- Mount Sinabung was dormant for 400 years until it erupted in 2010, killing at least two and displacing 30,000 others
By KIERAN CORCORAN and AMANDA WILLIAMS
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The eerie aftermath of a once-dormant volcano which killed more than a dozen people last week has been captured in a series of haunting pictures.
Sixteen died last week when the Sinabung volcano in Indonesia erupted violently, also forcing thousands from their homes.
Mount Sinabung had been dormant for 400 years until it erupted in 2010, killing at least two people and displacing 30,000 others.
The volcano has been erupting sporadically since September, leaving the landscape barren and ash-covered.
+15The eerie aftermath of a once-dormant volcano which killed more than a dozen people last week has been captured in a series of haunting pictures
+15Sixteen died last week when the Sinabung volcano in Indonesia erupted violently, also forcing thousands from their homes
+15A chuch standing among barren trees in Karo. More than 30,000 people have been displaced as Mount Sinabung that killed about 16 people continues spewing smoke and hot ash
+15Sixteen died last week when the Sinabung volcano in Indonesia erupted violently, also forcing thousands from their homes
+15Dogs guarding a house in Karo. More than 30,000 people have been displaced. Sixteen died last week when the Sinabung volcano in Indonesia erupted violently, also forcing thousands from their homes
+15Thousands of villagers were allowed to return to their homes on the slopes of the volcano despite the fact it had been erupting sporadically for four months
+15Many in the rural island communities had been desperate to return to check on their homes and farms, presenting a dilemma for the government
Footage uploaded to Youtube shows the twisters forming as huge quantities of molten rock pour down the mountainside, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.
The moving pillars of ash and air are caused by the burning 'pyroclastic flow' heating the air directly above it. This air rises, sucking still more into the sky above.
As heated gas is drawn in from all sides, it can create swirling turbulence within the burning air formations, causing them to spin as they make their way down the mountainside, according to Slate.
The devastating combination of melted rock, ash and scalding air can travel and hundreds of miles an hour, destroying what it touches.
At least 16 people were killed by the violent eruption last week, after months of rumbling from the mountain.
+15Mount Sinabung had been dormant for 400 years until it erupted in 2010, killing at least two people and displacing 30,000 others
+15A church standing next to a barren tree in Karo. Mount Sinabung is now among about 130 active volcanoes in Indonesia and has sporadically erupted since September
They include a TV journalist, four high school students and their teacher who went to see Mount Sinabung up close after being told it was becoming safer.
Just one day before, thousands of villagers were allowed to return to their homes on the slopes of the volcano despite the fact it had been erupting sporadically for four months.
Villagers were seen tending to the charred corpses of victims, themselves covered in thick grey ash, as far as two miles from the peak.
Many in the rural island communities had been desperate to return to check on their homes and farms, presenting a dilemma for the government.
+15A house covered with volcanic ash in Karo. At least 16 people were killed by the violent eruption last week, after months of rumbling from the mountain
+15Thousands of villagers were allowed to return to their homes on the slopes of the volcano despite the fact it had been erupting sporadically for four months
But hundreds of villagers also demanded to be moved safer areas because they were scared to go back.
Evacuee Naek Sembiring, one of 156 camping in a church, told The Jakarta Post two months ago that his entire village had agreed they would not return despite the situation being declared safe.
'We fear we might die,' he said. 'Our village is nearest to Mount Sinabung. In the event of an eruption where would we run to?'
Indonesia is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the Pacific Ring of Fire, an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.
+15
+15Indonesia is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the Pacific Ring of Fire, an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin
+15Ash-covered motorcycles are pictured as rescue team members walk through ash during rescue operations after the Mount Sinabung eruption
A house in Sigarang-garang village covered with volcanic ash
Mount Sinabung had been dormant for 400 years until it erupted in 2010, killing at least two people and displacing 30,000 others.
It is now among about 130 active volcanoes in Indonesia and has sporadically erupted since September.
But despite volcanos being notoriously hard to predict, it is difficult to keep farmers away because the slopes of the mountains are highly fertile.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2554984/Captured-An-entire-town-left-covered-layer-ash-devastating-volcano-leaves-16-dead-wreaks-havoc-Indonesia.html#ixzz2sqERDRKP
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Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2554984/Captured-An-entire-town-left-covered-layer-ash-devastating-volcano-leaves-16-dead-wreaks-havoc-Indonesia.html#ixzz2sqDj2x9G
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