Mount Sinabung in Karo, north Sumatra, Indonesia, has spewed hot clouds sliding 4.5km to the east and south-east, with ash columns billowing up to 4km over the past days, Vietnam News Agency ( VNA ) reported.      

Smoke spewing from the mountain has blanketed the Sinabung highway, seriously disrupting daily life.

According to local authorities, the volcano has erupted 32 times within June alone.

Head of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNBP) Syamsul Maarif said on Tuesday that the Indonesian government spent nearly US$500,000 on search-and-rescue and evacuation in affected areas.

Since September 2013, BNPB has provided more than US$10.6 million for Karo authorities and residents.

The evacuation is being accelerated. Currently, 112 houses have been built and another 370 are expected to accommodate the evacuees in late August.

Indonesia has about 130 active volcanoes. Last year, Sinabung volcano also claimed dozens of lives.

About 60km to the south-west off Medan city on Sumatra island, the 2,460m Mount Sinabung has been back to the life since last September after being quiet for 400 years.

It has erupted on and off since then, forcing 10,200 to evacuate to 10 shelter areas this June.

- Bernama