By Bond Robertson 
Authorities said 13 people have died so far and 98 people have been injured. Evacuation work is underway under very difficult conditions.
The death toll from the volcanic eruption on Mount Semeru in Indonesia has now risen to 13, according to a government spokesperson.
Many have suffered burns, and the condition of 16 of them is critical.
The outbreak was first announced on Saturday morning. Twitter users posted exciting videos of people fleeing for their lives from the ash flood.
The images show that entire villages are covered in volcanic ash that reaches the rooftops. Reports from local residents say that thick smoke obscures the sun, which envelopes the area in darkness.
Many serious burns
On Sunday, rescue work was still in full swing. Homes and cars were partially buried, and pets were suffocated to death.
A large number of people were seriously burned when hot ash, smoke and lava flowed from Semeru volcano.
Ten people were taken out of the area alive. A local TV station reported that these are local workers working on a sandblasted roof.
So far, 57 people have been hospitalized after the disaster. Among them are two pregnant women. The condition is described as critical for 16 people who sustained very severe burns.
Unknown number of missing
Indonesia’s National Crisis Management Committee said in a statement on Sunday that the outbreak had infected 98 others, including two pregnant women. CNN Reports.
They also said that search and rescue work was continuing, but did not specify how many people were still missing.
Power cuts, smoke and storms made evacuation difficult.
Ash covered at least 11 villages in Lumajang, and hundreds of residents took refuge in temporary shelters. Among them are more than 300 families from the village of Korah Keropan, where many homes were destroyed by lava and ash.
Ask people to keep their distance
according to Exploring the volcano It is a volcanic eruption where ash was released from the volcano to an altitude of 12,200 meters. The lava flow has moved up to 800 meters from the crater down to the river, and people are being asked to stay at least 5 kilometers from the crater, the AP news agency writes.
Authorities say Semeru has been active since Friday night. The height of the volcano is 3,676 meters above sea level, and its eruption had previously occurred in December of last year. Even at that time, thousands of people fled, and ash covered the villages.
Indonesia lies between two continental plates that lead to high levels of tectonic and volcanic activity.