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BLITAR, Indonesia : Scientists in Indonesia closely monitored three simmering volcanoes across the disaster-prone nation Friday, including the offspring of infamous Krakatau off Sumatra island.
Ash has been spewing some 200 metres (yards) into the air since Tuesday at Anak Krakatau, or Child of Krakatau, the volcano left behind after Krakatau blew in 1883 and killed some 36,000 people, scientist Agus Budianto told AFP.
"We will issue a recommendation for visitors not to come close to Anak Krakatau, (to maintain) at least a three-kilometre (two-mile) distance," said Budianto, Indonesia's Volcanology and Geology Disaster Mitigation Centre.
Anak Krakatau forms part of a popular international tourist destination about 40 kilometres off Sumatra island. Visitors typically tour the waters around the volcano by boat.
Budianto said scientists were considering raising the alert status of the volcano a rung up on its four-tier system, but said the disaster potential of the volcano, being far offshore, was low.
Meanwhile, Mount Soputan on Sulawesi island spewed more smoke and lava, a day after the volcano, one of Sulawesi's most active, shot clouds of smoke 1,500 metres (one mile) into the air and lava down its slopes.
Scientist Jemmi Runtuwene, speaking from the volcano's monitoring post about 25 kilometres from its crater, said on Friday that the smoke column only reached 100 to 600 metres and that tremors were calmer compared to Thursday.
Residents living in the sparsely-populated surrounding areas have not been evacuated.
On Indonesia's main island of Java, Mount Kelut remained on red alert, meaning an eruption is feared at any time.
An advisory that the volcano could blow was issued on October 16 and sparked efforts to evacuate some 130,000 people living within 10 kilometres of its water-filled crater.
"The temperature of the crater lake is still recording a slight increase," said Sulis, a scientist at Kelut's monitoring post.
The rise indicates sustained volcanic activity and the risk of an eruption. More shallow and deep tremors caused by magma activity have also been recorded, he said.
Disaster management officials have had difficulties convincing locals that they face imminent danger, though many shelters are filling up at night.
An AFP correspondent in Blitar, one of the two districts straddling the volcano, said most evacuation shelters he visited on Friday were empty.
Kelut most recently erupted in 1990, sending searing gasses and volcanic debris rushing down its slopes that killed 34 people.
Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," where continental plates collide, causing frequent seismic and volcanic activity. The archipelago nation is home to 129 active volcanoes, including 21 on Java.
- AFP /ls
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