30 treated after exposure to fumes from Ijen crater.

JAKARTA: Around 30 people were treated at health centres and hospitals after being exposed to concentrated sulphuric gas which spewed from the crater of Mount Ijen volcano in East Java province’s Banyuwangi regency.

The National Disaster Management Authority said in a statement that an eruption occurred on Wednesday (Mar 21) night.

Residents of Kalianyar village situated near the crater subsequently experienced shortness of breath and vomiting.

As many as 178 other people were also evacuated from four surrounding areas.

Head of the authority, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, said in the statement that the smell of the toxic fumes had begun to subside.

Members of the community, visitors, tourists, climbers and miners have been barred from going near the crater.

They have been advised not to conduct any activity until further notice. Access to the top of the mountain’s crater has been closed.

According to the statement, activity at Mount Ijen is currently classified as "Normal", or "Level 1".

The Southeast Asian archipelago of Indonesia has more than 17,000 islands and islets, and nearly 130 active volcanoes.

It is situated on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", a vast zone of geological instability where the collision of tectonic plates causes frequent quakes and major volcanic activity.

Read more at https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/30-treated-after-exposure-to-fumes-from-ijen-crater-10066794