Bali's Mount Agung spews smoke and ash

Smoke and ash have been seen spewing from Mount Agung on the Indonesian island of Bali, two months after heightened volcanic activity led to people being evacuated from their homes.

The minor eruption, which formed an ash cloud 700 metres above the volcanic peak, occurred just after 5pm on Tuesday. Indonesia’s disaster mitigation agency described the eruption as “steam driven”.

The agency’s head, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, urged people in the area to remain calm and stay out of the designated hazard zone which covered a radius of 6-7.5km around the volcano. He repeated warnings to tourists and hikers not to climb the volcano, whose peak is the highest point on Bali.

Indonesia’s volcanology centre said there had not been an increase in the frequency of volcanic tremors and it was monitoring the situation.

The alert level covering Mount Agung was raised to the maximum level of four in late September, sparking fears that the volcano would erupt for the first time in more than half a century. More than 100,000 people living within the designated danger zone were ordered to leave their homes.

On Tuesday the alert level remained at three, having been downgraded on 29 October. At least 29,000 people who live closest to Mount Agung’s peak – a sacred site for Balinese Hindus – remain in makeshift camps and shelters across the island.

Bali’s Ngurah international airport, a busy tourist hub, was operating as normal.