Drone captures village damage from Semeru eruption

Aerial video showed rows of destroyed houses, many with roofs missing, sitting against an ashen landscape in the deserted village of Curah Kobokan, while Mount Semeru continued emitting white smoke in the background.

The tallest mountain on the island of Java erupted dramatically on Saturday, shooting a towering column of ash into the sky that blanketed surrounding villages. More than 50 people had suffered injuries from the eruption, mostly burns.

Lava flows destroyed a strategic bridge connecting two areas in the nearby district of Lumajang with the city of Malang.

Semeru is one of more than 100 active volcanoes in Indonesia, a country that straddles the Pacific Ring of Fire, an area of high seismic activity that rests atop multiple tectonic plates.