Erupting volcano (illustration)
Erupting volcano (illustration)iStock

13 people were killed on Saturday after Indonesia's Semeru volcano erupted, the country's disaster mitigation agency (BNPB) said, according to Reuters.

10 people who were trapped following the eruption have been evacuated to safety. Dozens were injured.

Semeru, the tallest mountain on Java island, threw up towers of ash and hot clouds on Saturday that blanketed nearby villages in East Java province and sent people fleeing in panic, the report said.

The eruption severed a strategic bridge connecting two areas in the nearby district of Lumajang with the city of Malang and wrecked buildings, authorities said.

BNPB official Abdul Muhari said in a news release that 13 people have been killed after the eruption, two of whom have been identified. 98 have been injured, including two pregnant women, and 902 have been evacuated, the statement said.

Semeru, more than 3,600 meters (12,000 feet) high, is one of Indonesia's nearly 130 active volcanoes. It erupted in January, causing no casualties.

Separately, an earthquake of magnitude 6 struck north of Halmahera on Sunday, the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said. Halmahera is about 2,000 km (1,200 miles) northeast of Semeru. There are no reports of injuries at this time.