The Merapi is a tall (2.8 km or 1.7 miles high) volcano and has steep slopes. The top of the mountain has no vegetation because erupted ash often falls there.
Dense vegetation covers the flanks of the volcano. The soil is very rich because of the volcanic ash, the surrounding soil makes it attractive for farmers to live near the volcano.
Small eruptions happen every 2-3 years, bigger ones every 10-15 years, and very large ones every 50-60 years. The biggest eruptions occurred in the years 1006, 1786, 1822, 1872 and 1930. The eruption of 1006 covered the central part of the island of Java with ash. The destruction was so bad that the existing Hindu kingdom was destroyed and the island was taken over by Muslims.
It is a stratovolcano located in central Java. It is 45miles north of Yogyakarta. The latest eruption was on Monday, July 20th 1998. It forced 2,100 people to flee the area. At first a huge column of black ash towered above the island. The lava flowed down the flanks of the volcano, destroying many acers of plantations to the west and southwest. Last of all came the mudslides due to the rain over the fresh debris.
Mount Merapi's fatal eruption was in November of 1994. Hot lava, heat clouds and volcanic ash killed sixty people. Since then many acers of land are closed. It also erupted on July 13, 1998. Lava flooded and ash reached two miles upward into the sky.
Yogyakarta has a population of 500,000. The current eruption began in 1987. Because of the rich, fresh, new, soil the mountain is an ideal area for wildlife, plants and plantations. After most eruptions some of the people must rebuild and recreate their area.
