“Alhamdulillah (Thank God), there is no increase in the volcanic activity at the crater of Dieng plateau in the aftermath of the earthquake,” the agency’s head, Arief Rahman, informed journalists here on Thursday.
The current situation appears normal, and local residents conduct their routine activities without any sense of fear, Rahman remarked.
Concurrently, Head of Banjarnegara District’s Geophysics Station Setyoajie Prayoedhie reported no further aftershocks in the Dieng plateau area.
“However, we continue to monitor seismic activities in the Dieng plateau area to track any aftershocks. At the moment, we do not detect any seismic activity,” he explained.
On Monday, at around 1:54 p.m. local time, a 1.4-magnitude tectonic earthquake rattled Dieng plateau and its surrounding areas.
According to the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), the quake’s epicenter was located some 12 kilometers away from the northern part of Wonosobo District, Central Java Province, at a depth of five kilometers.
The agency’s authority urged local people to stay calm and not be provoked by misleading information. The people were also advised to check their houses for any crack or damage following the minor quake.
“Please ensure no cracks or damages occurred that may harm the house buildings,” the agency’s authority stated.
The Dieng crater has repeatedly erupted. In July 2017, for instance, several people visiting the Sileri Crater in the Dieng Tourism area of Banjarnegara District had sustained injuries while attempting to protect themselves after some people panicked amid the Dieng crater’s eruption.
The public relations officer of the Central Java Police Senior Commissioner Djarod Padakova stated that the tourists had suffered minor injuries in an attempt to save themselves in a chaotic situation.
"Some people were injured when they fell while fleeing the place," Padakova noted.
He pointed out that during that time, some visitors were exposed to mudflow, adding that it was not hot.
In July 2017, a phreatic explosion had occurred in the Sileri Crater of the Dieng Plateau Tourism Area in Banjarnegara District. The eruption, at 12.00 local time, reportedly reached as high as 50 meters.
The eruption was said to reach as far as the waterboom parking lot.
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Translator: Wuryanti P, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Sri Haryati
Copyright © ANTARA 2020
