Indonesia's Mount Slamet Spews Lava and Ash

Mount Slamet spews lava and gas during its eruption as seen from Pandansari village in Brebes, Central Java, Indonesia on Sept. 18, 2014.

Idhad Zakaria—AP

September 18, 2014

Indonesia’s Mount Slamet began spewing lava again Thursday morning after a four-day silence, sending ash tumbling down on nearby villages.

Authorities banned activity within four kilometers of the peak and are prepared to evacuate some 24,000 residents from seven villages with roughly four miles of the crater, the Associated Press reports.

The eruption Thursday followed a series of loud bangs and sent molten material as much as 3,000 feet above the peak, according to the Jakarta Post. Forests on the northern side of the volcano were destroyed.

The alert status has stood at level 3 since August—a level 4 alert, the highest, would prompt the evacuation, according to the Post. The volcano, one of about 130 across the country, last erupted in 2009.

Look at These Incredible Close-Ups of a Volcanic Eruption in Iceland

Glowing lava flows from an eruption at the Holuhraun lava field near Bardarbunga. Sept. 2.

Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-Images.com

Lava bursts up to some 328 feet (100 meters) in the air near Bardarbunga. Sept. 2.

Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-Images.com

Heat from the lava distorts the view of the fountains in the distance near Bardarbunga. Sept. 2.

Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-Images.com

A late afternoon view of part of the fissure erupting as fumes and steam rise into the air near Bardarbunga. Sept. 2.

Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-Images.com

A fountain splashes up over a layer of cooled black lava in the foreground near Bardarbunga. Sept. 2.

Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson—Arctic-Images.com

The lava-producing fissure eruption began on Aug. 31, but part of it was already extinct the next day. Bardarbunga, Sept. 1.