After two weeks of volcanic eruptions, life for people living near Indonesia's Mount Merapi remains dangerous and difficult. The death toll from the eruptions has surpassed 200, and more than a quarter of a million people have evacuated their homes. While vulcanologists believe the eruption is dying down, they can't guarantee it won't flare up again. On the south side of Merapi, Indonesian army commandos lead a search-and-rescue mission. In the distance, smoke and gray ash billow from Merapi's crater high into the sky. Heat shimmers up from the scorched earth. A burnt and decaying stench hangs in the air.
After two weeks of volcanic eruptions, life for people living near Indonesia's Mount Merapi remains dangerous and difficult. The death toll from the eruptions has surpassed 200, and more than a quarter of a million people have evacuated their homes. While vulcanologists believe the eruption is dying down, they can't guarantee it won't flare up again.
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On the south side of Merapi, Indonesian army commandos lead a search-and-rescue mission. In the distance, smoke and gray ash billow from Merapi's crater high into the sky. Heat shimmers up from the scorched earth. A burnt and decaying stench hangs in the air.
Commandos and rescue workers pick and shovel through an obliterated village. They place a few bones and blackened remains in body bags before heading back to base.
There, battalion commander Lt. Col. Iwan Setiawan reviews his ash-covered troops. The commandos, known as Kopassus, could use some good publicity. Until recently, they were blacklisted by the U.S. for human rights abuses.
Setiawan says that seven bodies were found on today's mission. They will be delivered to a nearby hospital. The village lay just four miles from the volcano, well within the 12-mile danger zone delineated by authorities. He adds that the rescue missions are mandated by the government and will continue until the government tells the commandos to stop.
The wind blows the ash from Mount Merapi westward, where it rains down from the sky. It crushes the vegetation, including the tropical fruit trees — mangosteens, rambutans and snake fruit — that farmers here grow.
Photo shows ash plume from erupting Mount Merapi. Credit: NASA.
Article continues: http://www.npr.org/2010/11/13/131292503/indonesian-eruption-a-disaster-in-slow-motion
