Indonesian volcano spews lava, ash
Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Mount Merapi spit out lava and a spectacular series of hot clouds Tuesday, as Indonesian government observers warned that the volcano remained a danger to villagers living on its slopes.

One of the eruptions sent debris falling two miles down the mountain, said Safari Dwiyono, a vulcanologist at a monitoring post in the densely populated province of Central Java.

Residents in the danger zone had all been evacuated, he said, and there were no immediate reports of injuries.

Thousands of people from villages farther down the 9,800-foot volcano, however, have returned home in recent days to tend crops, milk cows and feed livestock – many complaining of boredom in government-run shelters. the rest