Ruang is the southernmost

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a typically conical volcano built up by many alternating layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with ...

in the Sangihe Islands arc,

North Sulawesi North Sulawesi () is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia. It is mainly located on the Minahasa Peninsula of the island of Sulawesi, south of the Philippines and southeast of Sabah, Malaysia, but also includes various small archipel ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

. It comprises an

island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

wide. The summit contains a partial lava dome and reaches some in altitude. From its summit, Klabat's peak in the south, that of Siau to the north, and

Ternate Ternate (), also known as the City of Ternate (; ), is the List of regencies and cities of Indonesia, city with the largest population in the province of North Maluku and an island in the Maluku Islands, Indonesia. It was the ''de facto'' provi ...

to the east can all be seen.

Geology

The top of the mountain is partially filled with a lava dome formed as a result of activity in 1904. Since then, volcanic activity has been observed with the formation of lava domes and

pyroclastic flow A pyroclastic flow (also known as a pyroclastic density current or a pyroclastic cloud) is a fast-moving current of hot gas and volcanic matter (collectively known as tephra) that flows along the ground away from a volcano at average speeds of b ...

s. The

volcano is wide.

Eruptions

Pre-21st century

At least 16 eruptions have been recorded from the volcano, with the first one occurring in 1808. Dr. Adolf Meyer witnessed a large eruption in 1871. Ruang was uninhabited at the time, but the inhabitants of nearby Tagulandang had many plantations on its slopes. The eruption destroyed these in minutes and caused a

tsunami A tsunami ( ; from , ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and underwater explosions (including detonations, ...

that obliterated most of their large village, situated on Tagulandang, opposite Ruang. Most of the village's inhabitants drowned, and their bodies afterward could be seen on the beach. The death toll was estimated to be around 300 to 400.

April 2024

Eruptions that began at 9:45pm (13:45 GMT) on 16 April forced over 800 people to evacuate the island for nearby Tagulandang. A exclusion zone from the crater was established and extended to . On 17 April, authorities raised the volcano's alert level to four, the highest in Indonesia and issued a tsunami alert which led to orders for 11,000 residents and evacuees in Tagulandang to be moved to

Manado Manado (, ) is the capital City status in Indonesia, city of the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of North Sulawesi. It is the second largest city in Sulawesi after Makassar, with the 2020 census giving a population of 451,916,Badan ...

in mainland

Sulawesi Sulawesi ( ), also known as Celebes ( ), is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the List of islands by area, world's 11th-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Min ...

, citing the risk of the volcano collapsing into the sea. The eruption also prompted the shutdown of

Sam Ratulangi International Airport Sam Ratulangi International Airport is an international airport located north-east of Manado, the capital city of North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Sam Ratulangi Airport serves as the primary gateway to Manado and the North Sulawesi region. Named aft ...

in Manado. Siau Tagulandang Biaro Islands Regency, where the volcano is located, declared a 14-day

state of emergency A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state before, during, o ...

. At least 501 houses and buildings were damaged by the eruption. After a two-week reduction in activity, the volcano erupted again on 30 April, forcing the closure of Sam Ratulangi airport and other airports as far as Gorontalo Province. All 843 residents of Ruang island were evacuated to

, while 12,000 residents of Tagulandang were relocated to Siau Island by ship. Airlines from West Malaysia and Singapore cancelled flights to

Sabah Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalima ...

and

Sarawak Sarawak ( , ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. It is the largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia. Sarawak is located in East Malaysia in northwest Borneo, and is ...

on 18 April due to reduced visibility. The sulphur dioxide plume from the volcano extended , covering the whole of

Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...

as of 19 April. However, both Sabah and Sarawak surface air quality are not affected by the eruption. Volcanic smoke from the Mount Ruang eruption was also seen on

Brunei Brunei, officially Brunei Darussalam, is a country in Southeast Asia, situated on the northern coast of the island of Borneo. Apart from its coastline on the South China Sea, it is completely surrounded by the Malaysian state of Sarawak, with ...

airspace despite only for a brief time but Bruneians are advised do not travelling to Sulawesi temporarily due to the Mount Ruang eruption.

References

External links