Shrouded, in the Shadow of MerapiDusted with ash, the hand of a victim of Indonesia's Mount Merapi extends from a sea of body bags in the city of Yogyakarta on Friday. The Indonesian volcano exploded violently Thursday night, more than doubling its recent death toll and cloaking villages nearly 10 miles (15 kilometers) away in shades of gray, the Associated Press reported. Streaking downhill at up to 60 miles (97 kilometers) an hour, pyroclastic flows—searing, ground-hugging mixtures of ash and toxic gas—are responsible for the 60 or more fatalities uncovered Thursday and Friday, according to the AP.
Photograph by Slamet Riyadi, AP

Pictures: Volcano's Biggest Blast Yet Scorches Villages

Warning: graphic images. Thursday night Indonesia's Mount Merapi volcano saw its biggest eruption since the mountain's October reawakening.

Published November 7, 2010