More than 40 dead after cold lava sweeps across village.

Dozens of people have died after downpours washed cold lava down an Indonesian volcano, destroying villages in its wake.

Heavy rain displaced chunks of rock and sent them into villages in Mount Marapi, Indonesia, before flood waters moved through the region.

With the death toll still climbing, 17 people remain missing in the Agam district and Tanah Datar.

Photos showed cars sitting on piles of debris, with some vehicles completely submerged in cold lava – also known as lahar, a mix of ash, sand and pebbles carried down a volcano during heavy rains.

Local woman Rina Devina told AFP about the moment the rock slide began: ‘I heard the thunder and the sound similar to boiling water. It was the sound of big rocks falling.

‘It was pitch black, so I used my cellphone as a flashlight. The road was muddy, so I chanted “God, have mercy!” over and over again.’

Ilham Wahab, a West Sumatra disaster mitigation agency official, said yesterday: ‘Data as of last night, we recorded 37 dead victims… But from this morning it has grown again, the figure reached 41.

‘We are focused on first, searching and rescuing the victims, second, protecting the evacuees, protecting the vulnerable people.’

Emergency posts and evacuation centres have been set up in the affected areas, with an estimated 84 homes, 16 bridges and two mosques damaged in Tanah Datar alone.

Mount Marapi erupted in early December, killing 11 hikers and sparking a two mile exclusion zone.

Anak Krakatoa, which means ‘child of Kratakoa’, first emerged following the massive eruption at Krakatoa in 1883, which triggered a period of global cooling.

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