The Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG) reported that an eruptive event at Dempo was recorded at 0605 on 12 January and lasted 24 seconds. A white plume rose about 20 m above the summit and drifted N. A webcam image posted with the report showed black and gray material floating on the surface of the lake. The Alert Level remained at 2 (on a scale of 1-4), and the public were reminded to stay 1 km away from the crater and as far as 2 km on the N flank.

Geological Summary. Dempo is a stratovolcano that rises above the Pasumah Plain of SE Sumatra. The andesitic complex has two main peaks, Gunung Dempo and Gunung Marapi, constructed near the SE rim of a 3-km-wide amphitheater open to the north. The high point of the older Gunung Dempo crater rim is slightly lower, and lies at the SE end of the summit complex. The taller Marapi cone was constructed within the older crater. Remnants of seven craters are found at or near the summit, with volcanism migrating WNW over time. The active 750 x 1,100 m active crater cuts the NW side of the Marapi cone and contains a 400-m-wide lake at the far NW end. Eruptions recorded since 1817 have been small-to-moderate explosions that produced local ashfall.

Source: Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known as CVGHM)