Indonesia has been devastated by a second natural disaster as the region's most volatile volcano erupted, killing at last 25 people, just hours after an earthquake and tsunami claimed a minimum of 113 lives.

Hundreds more people are missing in the wake of the earthquake off the coast of Sumatra, which sparked a 10-foot high Tsunami that smashed over several islands and washed hundreds of homes into the sea.

Indonesian authorities were struggling to cope with the aftermath of the 7.7-magnitude earthquake, with rescuers struggling to reach the Mentawai islands, closest to the epicenter, because of strong winds and rough seas.




Padang Sumatra is on the same stretch of coastline as Aceh, the epicentre for the tsunami on Boxing Day 2004, when 200,000 people in 13 countries were killed. At least 128,000 people died in Indonesia alone.

The Health Ministry's crisis center said that so far in this disaster 113 bodies have been recovered but that the number of missing was between 150 and 500 and reports of damage and further injuries are steadily climbing.

But the region - one of the most seismically active on the planet - was dealt a second natural disaster to cope with after the eruption of Mount Merapi, which translates as Fire Mountain.

The mountain spewed clouds of searing ash, killing at least 25 villagers and among the dead is an old man known as the mountain's spiritual gatekeeper.
A map of the earthquake that set off a deadly tsunami

The blast eased pressure that had been building up behind a lava dome perched on the volcano's crater, but experts said the worst may not be over.

The lava dome could unleash deadly gases and debris if it collapses.

'It's a little calmer today,' said Surono, the chief of Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation.

'No hot clouds, no rumbling. But a lot of energy is pent up back there. There's no telling what's next.'

Mount Merapi has erupted many times over the last 200 years, often with deadly results.

In 1994, 60 people were killed, while in 1930, more than a dozen villages were incinerated, leaving up to 1,300 dead.

Still, as with other volcanoes in Indonesia, many people call its fertile slopes home. More than 11,000 live near Merapi.

Though thousands streamed into makeshift emergency shelters after Tuesday's powerful eruption, many started returning Wednesday saying they had to tend to their crops and protect their homes.

'I keep thinking about what's happening up there, with my cows, my property,' said Hadi Sumarmo, who has a farm in Srumbung, a village three miles from the crater's mouth.

'I just want to go back to check. If I hear sirens, I'll get out again quickly.'

Officials said earlier that by closely monitoring the famously active volcano - one of 129 in the world's largest archipelago - they thought they could avoid casualties, but the death toll was quickly rising.




Aris Triyono, of the national search and rescue agency, said his teams were scouring the southern slope of the mountain, which has been pounded by rocks and debris, in search of victims and survivors.

Twenty-five bodies have been brought to the main hospital in the city of Yogyakarta and more than a dozen others were admitted with respiratory problems, burns and other injuries.

Among the dead was Maridjan, an 85-year-old man who had been entrusted by a highly respected late king to watch over the volcano's spirits.

'We found his body,' said Suseno, a member of the search and rescue team, amid reports that the old man was found in the position of praying, kneeling face-down on the floor.

Maridjan, who for years led ceremonies in which rice and flowers were thrown into the crater to appease spirits, has angered officials in the past by refusing to evacuate even during eruptions.




Meanwhile, efforts continue to work through the devastation caused by the earthquake, which struck 13 miles beneath the ocean floor.

The tsunami it created swept over several popular surfing destibations including The Macaronis on North Pagai island was also hit.

In an official press release, World Surfaris said Macaronis had 'experienced a level of devastation that has rendered the resort inoperable'.

Reports via Facebook from a surfer at the resort suggested that all villas had been 'wiped out' by the tsunami.

Most buildings in the coastal village of Betu Monga were destroyed, said Hardimansyah, an official with the Department of Fisheries.

'Of the 200 people living in that village, only 40 have been found. One hundred and sixty are still missing, mostly women and children,' he said.

'We have people reporting to the security post here that they could not hold on to their children, that they were swept away. A lot of people are crying.'

Hardimansyah, who has only one name, said 80 per cent of the houses in the area were damaged and food supplies are low.

In Jakarta, Indonesia's Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said the tremor that struck at 1642 BST and was centred about 48 miles south-west of the Pagai Selatan in Mentawai Island.

It was reportedly felt in five towns in Bengkulu and West Sumatra provinces. One eyewitness in the city of Padang, Sofyan Alawi, said: 'Everyone was running out of their houses.'

Mr Alawi also said that with loudspeakers from mosques blaring out tsunami warnings, the roads leading to surrounding hills were quickly jammed with cars and motorcycles.

'We kept looking back to see if a wave was coming,' said 28-year-old resident Ade Syahputra.

The city of Padang was badly shaken a year ago by a 7.6-magnitude quake that killed at least 700 people and flattened or severely damaged 180,000 buildings.

The world's largest archipelago, Indonesia is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity due to its location on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire.