The hazard status at Lokon-Empung throughout the report period of 2 June-19 October was at Alert Level 2 (on a scale of 1-4). Between 2 June and 5 October a white gas plume consistently rose 25-50 m above Tompaluan crater. The gas plume rose slightly higher, to 75 m, during the following two weeks. Seismicity remained above normal background levels during this time, with some variation (table 7). Shallow volcanic earthquakes increased in late July, but by September the weekly count was lower than in early July, eventually reaching a low the week of 15-21 September when no such events were detected. Seismicity quickly returned to high values of 138-209 shallow events per week in October.

Table 7. Seismicity at Lokon-Empung, 2 June-19 October 2003. Data was not available for 16-29 June and 04-31 August. Courtesy of VSI.

Geological Summary. The Lokong-Empung volcanic complex, rising above the plain of Tondano in North Sulawesi, includes four peaks and an active crater. Lokon, the highest peak, has a flat craterless top. The morphologically younger Empung cone 2 km NE has a 400-m-wide, 150-m-deep crater that erupted last in the 18th century. A ridge extending 3 km WNW from Lokon includes the Tatawiran and Tetempangan peaks. All eruptions since 1829 have originated from Tompaluan, a 150 x 250 m crater in the saddle between Lokon and Empung. These eruptions have primarily produced small-to-moderate ash plumes that sometimes damaged croplands and houses, but lava-dome growth and pyroclastic flows have also occurred.

Information Contacts: Dali Ahmad, Hetty Triastuty, Nia Haerani, and Suswati, Volcanological Survey of Indonesia (VSI), Jalan Diponegoro No. 57, Bandung 40122, Indonesia (URL: http://www.vsi.esdm.go.id/).