The Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG) reported continuing unrest at Lokon-Empung during 17-23 September. Daily white steam-and-gas plumes rose as high as 100 m above the Tompaluan Crater rim and drifted in multiple directions. Incandescence at the crater was visible on 17 September. The Alert Level remained at 3 (on a scale of 1-4) and the public was warned to stay 2.5 km away from Tompaluan Crater.

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.

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