Facing the Merapi's Eruption

It’s my experience about facing the Merapi’s eruption. 

It started on Thursday, 28 October; two days after Merapi erupted for the first time. I was doing my daily activities, just like usual. Not only sleep along day, but also clean my house from the dust of eruption. I was very tired. Although it had been cleaned again and again, my house was never looks better then a broken ship.

At night, about 9 p.m, I felt something different, “I can’t sleep”. So, I used my time to playing computer. My sister and my Mom were tired and slept (you can imagine how often we swept the floor from dust). Besides, my father watched news on TV. He always updated the information about Merapi’s activities.

When I enjoyed playing computer, I heard something trembled. I crept to find the source till I knew that the sound was from my windows bedroom. Then I told to my Mother that I felt a tremor shake. It must be caused by Merapi eruption. I saw news on TV immediately, and no doubt, Merapi erupted again even higher from the first eruption.

No long then, sandy rain came. Not just sand, but also pebbles. The quite night became noisy caused by either sandy rain or rumbling sound. It was about 12 p.m. I can't feel calm anymore. My sister and my Mom wake up and gathered with us watching TV.

I just worried if the hot cloud of Merapi’s eruption will reach our region. Although I had made it sure that my house was secure enough (about 23 km far from Merapi), I still like to imagine all the worst possibility that may occur.

That night, I can’t sleep well. I stayed on TV seeing the newest information about Merapi’s activities in anticipated of all the worst possibility, likes I had always thought.

I just slept about two hours that night. Early in the morning, I use my mask and bike, then surrounded around my region. I think that I was very interested with what had happened that day.

Dust/sand/pebbles (they mixed into one form) from the eruption last night were thick enough. Whole leafs on tree were closed with the dust. All around looked like a die country. All seen gray, sulfur smelled, and dusty.

Worried the eruption will happen again, my family decided to go to Bantul, to my grandfather’s house. It just to compose us, and voided from the worst possibility that may occur, as I always imagine. I regarded it as a fun tour, not as an evacuation of disaster, though it was very tired and not fun at all.

Here is link to the pictures I had taken before/after the eruption: (click me)