[Today’s Prayer] Indonesia's Lewotobi Volcano Erupts Again in 3 Days... Larger than the 4-Day Eruption

Indonesia's Lewotobi Laki-laki volcano erupted again on the 7th, three days after the 4th, spewing a huge column of volcanic ash into the air. This is a much larger explosion than the 4th explosion that killed 9 people and injured 64.

There are no immediate reports of casualties from the second explosion.

“The 1,584-metre-tall Lewotobe Laki-laki volcano on Flores island erupted 11 times on the 7th, spewing ash plumes as high as 8,000 metres,” said Hadi Wijaya, director of the Volcanology and Geology Disaster Prevention Center.

The eruption on the 4th affected more than 10,000 people in 10 villages. About 4,400 villagers were evacuated to temporary shelters after the eruption. The blast also destroyed seven schools, 24 houses and a convent on Flores, a predominantly Catholic island.

Wijaya said the government was still analyzing the changing eruption patterns of Lewotobe to determine where residents should safely relocate, adding that the center had asked the East Nusa Tenggara provincial government to close the only road connecting Maumere, the largest city on Flores, and nearby Larantuka because it passes through a rugged volcanic area.

National Disaster Management Agency chief Suhayantho said the government planned to evacuate about 16,000 people from the danger zone and warned thousands of those evacuated not to return to their homes. He also said residents of the worst-hit villages would be relocated within the next six months and each family waiting for a new home would be compensated 500,000 rupiah (about 44,000 won) per month.

Lewotobi Laki-laki volcano also erupted in January, spewing thick clouds that forced the closure of the island’s Franciscus Siberius Seda airport and the evacuation of about 6,500 people. No casualties or major damage were reported, but the airport remains closed due to continued seismic activity.

Source : News

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. (Psalm 139:13)

God, Creator of all things, we pray to You as we hear that the volcano in Lewotobi Laki-laki, Indonesia, erupted a few days ago, killing and injuring many people, and has now erupted again.

We want the global church to join us in praying for the souls here who must be suffering in fear as seismic activity continues and even the island's airport has been closed for months.

We are all God's creatures, and we want everyone to remember the great Creator God who made our bodies and innards.

We confess that we are mere creatures before the Lord who rules all of nature, and we can only humble ourselves. May the souls of Indonesia humbly come before You, the great God, and may You grant them the grace to find out what is true in this situation beyond human control and to know the Savior Jesus Christ.

We declare that it is only You, our Lord, that we can lean on and trust. We pray for the souls of Indonesia who have lost loved ones here, and for those who are still filled with fear as a result of the earthquake, that the Gospel of Jesus will quickly reach them with the life-giving message of Jesus!

And may it be only the Gospel and the grace of our Lord Jesus that reigns here from now on. May this be the beginning of a history in which the people of this place will not just practice religion, but will encounter the living God through this event and rise up with a vision of the eternal kingdom of God!