Chaos as residents flee deadly volcano

A mass burial on Sunday for many of the 141 people killed in the past two weeks served as a reminder of the mountain's devastating power.

With the closest airport closed because of clouds of ash, rail traffic leaving Yogyakarta has doubled in recent days, as residents – many of them students from the city's universities –tried to get out. "My parents have been calling ... saying 'You have to get out of there! You have to come home!'," said Linda Ervana, a 21-year-old history student who was waiting with friends at a train station.

After days of failing to get rail tickets – long queues stretch through the main hall – her group decided to rent a minibus with other classmates.

Concerns about airborne ash after Friday's massive eruption prompted many international airlines to cancel flights to the capital, Jakarta, days before United States President Barack Obama's planned trip to Indonesia – his second stop in a 10-day Asian tour.

All the airlines were flying again yesterday and White House officials said Mr Obama was still scheduled to touch down tomorrow.

Merapi, one of the world's most active volcanoes, has erupted many times in the past century, killing more than 1,400 people. But Friday was the mountain's deadliest day since 1930, with nearly 100 lives lost.

Most families chose to have their relatives interred in a mass grave, a common practice in Indonesia following a disaster.

Yesterday Merapi was still shooting clouds of gas and debris up to 3,000 feet in the air and ash flowed down its slopes.

A state vulcanologist said: "Based on what we're seeing now, it could erupt again any time."