Two Trapped in a Bunker: Yogyakarta, Central Java, Indonesia

Not that I am claustrophobic but I would surely hate to be trapped in a concrete bunker on the slopes of a volcano already spewing hot ask and lava. According to reports from Yogyakarta, rescue workers were digging through volcanic debris yesterday to reach two people trapped in an underground emergency shelter.

Soldiers wearing heat retardant clothes dug through volcanic debris trying to reach the men and the fierce heat apparently melted the troops' shovels and the tires on a mechanical digger brought into plough through more than two meters of volcanic debris covering the bunker which was built for protection from volcanic eruption.

It appears the two have been trapped since late Wednesday when Merapi sent massive clouds of searing gas and rock fragments rolling far down its slopes Rescue workers had been in touch with the two by cell phone but ironically their phones no longer worked and I was assumed their batteries had run out. The two people trapped in the bunker were emergency workers helping evacuate villagers from the mountain.

The bunkers are several of which dot the slopes of Merapi and are typically equipped with water and food and emergency supplies of oxygen. The main dangers at Merapi are fast moving bursts of blistering gases and rock fragments called pyroclastic flow. One killed more than 60 villagers in 1994, and about 1,300 people died when Merapi erupted in 1930. Merapi continuing to spew out scorching gas and rock fragments.

Scientists had thought that the 3,000 metre volcano was calming down after weeks of activity but the violent eruptions led to the re-evacuation of thousands of villagers and the government again put the peak on its highest alert level.