Mount Agung comes alive after 120 years

The 3,143m-high Gunung (Mount) Agung volcano on the Indonesian island of Bali erupts on March 17 1963 after being dormant since 1843. The eruptions continue until January 1964, killing more than 1,600 people. On February 18 local residents heard loud explosions and saw clouds rising from the crater. On February 24 lava began flowing down the northern slope of the mountain, eventually travelling 7km in the next 20 days. On March 17 the volcano erupts, sending debris 10km into the air and generating massive pyroclastic flows. One report says residents from three villages in the lower mountain slopes are surrounded by boiling streams of lava. Many of the survivors are hospitalised for burns sustained from the scorching ash and falling rocks. The island is blanketed by thick ash while lava flows engulf hectares of rice crops, threatening the lives of 200,000 people with famine. More people die in the consequent heavy rainfall as well as another major eruption on May 16. On November 21 2017 Mount Agung starts erupting again. Current status: Ongoing.