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A Volcano Erupts

MOUNT AGUNG erupts on November 27, in Bali, Indonesia. ANDRI TAMBUNAN—GETTY IMAGES

Thousands of people have fled Bali, Indonesia, since Mount Agung began to erupt on November 25. The volcano spewed spew TOA55/ISTOCK/GETTY IMAGES PLUS to spit out forcefully (verb) The broken pipe was spewing water. ash and lava two and a half miles into the sky. On November 27, authorities expanded the danger zone surrounding the volcano. They also raised the danger alert to the highest level. Bali’s airport was briefly closed, stranding tourists on the island.

Indonesia is in the Ring of Fire. This is a belt around the Pacific Ocean containing most of Earth’s active volcanoes. Mount Agung’s last major eruption was in 1963. But in September, volcanic activity began to increase. At press time, about 100,000 people had been asked to evacuate.