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A volcano in eastern Indonesia erupted on Sunday morning, spewing an ash tower more than two miles into the sky and prompting officials to warn people to keep away.
Mount Ibu, located on the island of Halmahera in North Maluku province, erupted at 00:37 and sent a thick column of dark smoke and ash west of the peak.
The eruption lasted more than three minutes and the ash towered 3.5 kilometre above the peak, an official at Mount Ibu's monitoring post, Axl Roeroe, said in a statement on Sunday.
"To residents and tourists near Mount Ibu, please do not conduct any activity within a two-kilometre radius (of the crater)," he said.
The alert level for the 1 325-metre volcano remained at a two on the four-tiered system and there was no evacuation order after the eruption.
But authorities urged people to wear face masks and glasses when doing outdoor activities and to anticipate falling volcanic ash.
Indonesia, a vast archipelago nation, experiences frequent seismic and volcanic activity due to its position on the Pacific "Ring of Fire".
READ MORE | Tsunami fears as 11 000 evacuated in Indonesia over Ruang volcano eruption
Earlier this month, Mount Ruang in North Sulawesi erupted, forcing thousands of people to evacuate.
The Sam Ratulangi International Airport in the city of Manado, located more than 100 kilometres from the crater, was also shut for days.
