Mount Marapi

The Marapi, or Mount Marapi is a volcano in West Sumatra, Indonesia, and is the most active volcano in Sumatra. Just like Mount Merapi on Java, its name means "Mountain of Fire". Its elevation is . Many cities and towns are located around the mountain such as Bukittinggi, Padang Panjang, and Batusangkar. The volcano is also popular among hikers.

 Mythology 
According to legend, the mountain is where the Minangkabau people first settled after their ship landed on the mountain when it was the size of an egg and surrounded by water. There are large numbers of  burial stones in the region which are facing in the direction of the mountain, showing that it is important to their culture.

 Eruptions 
The volcano has a known history of eruptions. Marapi had a large eruption in September 1830. In January 1975 an eruption occurred with mudflows and lahars that caused fatalities in the surrounding area. A large eruption happened in 1979, which killed 60 people. At least one person was killed during an eruption in 1996. In April–May 2018 ashfalls to the southeast occurred.

Since 2011, the volcano has been at the second level of a four-tier alert system made by the Volcanological Survey of Indonesia. Predicting the volcano's behavior is hard because the source of its eruptions are shallow and near its peak, while its eruptions are not caused by a deep movement of magma that can be detected as volcanic earthquakes on seismic monitors. Even though there are common eruptions, there are about 1,400 people living on the mountain's slopes in the villages of Rubai and Gobah Cumantiang, which are about 5 to 6 kilometers from the summit.

 2023 eruption 
On 3 December 2023, the volcano erupted, leaving 23 climbers dead. Three people were injured and rescued. The ash reached to a height of  and fell in nearby regions. A  exclusion zone was announced.

On 22 December, the volcano erupted again, shooting out volcanic ash that cancelled the flights at Minangkabau International Airport.

As of January 2024, at least 113 eruptions have happened on Marapi since its original activity in December, with the latest eruption occurring on 23 January. Ash has risen at least 1300 meters into the air and residents within 4.5 kilometers of the mountain have been recommended to leave their homes.

 References 

Marapi