Indonesia is located between the Pacific, Eurasian, and Australian tectonic plates. This region is known as the „ring of fire“ and is regularly affected by natural disasters which include frequent occurrence of earthquakes, volcano eruptions and tsunamis. Yet, the Ring of Fire does not only bring death and destruction. Volcanoes offer a pull factor for farmers. Soil fed by volcanic ash is highly fertile and has attracted settlements on and near the slopes of volcanoes, and the leftovers of the eruptions are being used as high-quality building material.
There are tons of tourists sitting in jeeps, negotiating the steep, sandy roads on the slopes of active volcanoes. Some are highly attracted by the destruction or even come to see ongoing eruptions. Lonely Miners searching for sulfur on volcanic land sourrounded by tourists who search for their next adventure are commonplace in some areas - as well as people lying with all-inclusive cocktails in the sun on tsunami-endangered beaches. Tourists and locals value pristine beaches and scenic landscapes and the feeling that everything is well-prepared for an emergency. In some hotels, there are tsunami warning buttons by which the hotel staff can trigger an alarm.
Scientists from all over the planet attempt to empirically track down the forces of nature with sensors, seismographs, and international research teams - in opposite to the traditional view of blaming human sins and not the unfavorable geographic location for the forces of nature. For many people, living near a volcanic crater is a sacred privilege. In some places the word of shamans and other spiritual leaders mean more than the data of the scientists. Mbah Maridjan for example was „the gatekeeper“ of Mount Merapi, charged by the Sultan of Yogyakarta with managing the volcano‘s hidden spirits. When officials came to tell him it was time to leave the volcano‘s lower slopes and move to safety, he refused and died during the 2010 eruption. Lately, Scientists have found another force—climate change— that affects the frequency of eruptions. A new study shows even relatively minor climate variations may have a big influence. Melting of ice on volcanoes can increase risk of landslides and destabilize the magma ‘plumbing system’ inside, say researchers. If they are right, today’s global warming could mean more and bigger volcanic eruptions in the future.
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A crewman of search and rescue in Bali.
Emergency switch in a hotel in Bali.
Golf course on Mount Merapi in Central Java.
Chinese tourists in Nusa Dua, Bali.
Poster found in the search and rescue offices in Bali.
[:de][:]Mount Merapi is the most active volcano in Java and has persistent minor eruptions, but according to volcanologists Mount Merapi is heavily overdue a large-scale eruption which could potentially put over 1.1 million people at risk.
Noer Cholik, a volcanologist and his porter working on top of Mount Merapi
Bapak Gimin in his living room.
A Souvenir, sold at Mount Merapi.
Two japanese tourists in Bali. The stones in the back were placed there as wave-breakers.
A boy during a tsunami exercise of a school in Jimbaran on Bali.
Noer Cholik, in the vulcanology center in Yogyakarta.
Disaster Management Volunteer Supriono in a house which was destroyed during the 2010 eruption of Mount Merapi.
Dario Rejo in Painem. His house was destroyed during the 2006 earthquake in Yogyakarta.
A tourist in Single-Fin, Bali. On this beach the threat of a Tsunami is specially acute.
We found this object at a Tsunami threatened area of Bali.
A young man, paralyzed by the big earthquake in the Jogjakarta area.
The Shaman of Banaran Keningar, one of the highest towns on Mount-Merapi. In case of an upcoming eruption many villagers rather listen to the advice of a Shaman than to the official authorities.
An Installation in one of the museums on top of Mount Merapi. It shows how tsunamis work. The term "tsunami" is a borrowing from the Japanese tsunami, meaning "harbour wave"
Mount Merapi is the most active volcano in Java.
A Monkey close to the top of Mount Merapi.
Earthquake-damaged house in Central-Java.
A women in front of her old house in Painem, Central-Java. After an Earthquake it was destroyed and she was displaced.
Tsunami-Alarm tower in Bali.
A Quran recovered from the ashes of the 2010 eruption of Mount Merapi.
A sulfur-miner in the crater of Mount-Ijen.
Tourists on Mount-Merapi.
A man in front of a residential house in the so called Teletubbie-village. The village was built after an earthquake destroyed an older village nearby. The houses are designed to be earthquake proof.
Aguss on Mount Ejin in Java. He is working as a tourist guide.
[:de][:]A sulfur mine in the crater of the Ijen volcano.
[:de][:]A sulfur miner bringing sulfur out of the crater of Mount Ijen.
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Across Padang city there are areas of subduction, which can trigger a powerful earthquake and generate tsunamis in the near future.
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Dilah, wearing a hijab.
[:de][:]Tsunami-shelter in Padang, West-Sumatra.
[:de][:]Tsunami-Alarm tower in Bali.
[:de][:]Ariyana was a victim to the 2006 earthquake in Jogjakarta.
[:de][:]The vulcanology center in Jogjakarta.
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A fisherman in a town of Sumatra. The word Tsunami is Japanese and originates from fishermen who, only when coming back from sea noticed that there has been a Wave in their Harbour.
Poster found in the search and rescue offices in Bali. It says: Safety is not a coincidence !!!
[:de][:]Mobile phone recovered from the ashes of the 2010 eruption of Mount-Merapi.
[:de][:]A car destroyed by the 2009 earthquake in Padang, West-Sumatra.
[:de][:]Parma from Imogiri. He was injured during the 2006 earthquake in Central Java.
[:de][:]Tourist on top of Mount Ijen. There are lots of tourists walking up and down the crater all night and all day long, together with the sulfur miners who are working there.
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