THE sky, previously bright, suddenly became unfriendly. Flashes of lightning and claps of thunder shocked the residents living around the Kaliadem tourism resort, Cangkringan, Sleman regency, Yogyakarta. Then Merapi went into a rage, spurting yellow, red and black clouds. The spewed lava shot southeast, hitting a hill, Bukit Kukusan, and poured over Kaliadem. Some of the lava overflowed into the Bebeng and Gendol rivers.

The volcanic onslaught tha