







































The Eruption of Mount Kelud and It’s Impacts  

in Blitar 1919-1922 
 

Ulin Nihayatul,* Agustinus Supriyono, Haryono Rinardi 
Master Program of History, Faculty of Humanities, Diponegoro University 

 

*Corresponding Author: ulin_nihay@yahoo.com  
 

 

Abstract 
 

This study is meant to deal with the aftermaths of Mount Kelud Eruption 

from 1919 to 1922 in the region of Blitar, which is focused on the effects of 

Mount Kelud eruption on the economy and its impacts for the three years 

following the eruption. The aftermaths of Mount Kelud eruption of 1919 

had caused many of the residents lose their livelihood, families and 

damages to the plantations in the region of Blitar. The damages affecting 

the plantations made the local economy in the region of Blitar drop. This 

economic slump certainly impeded the development progress in the 

Gemeente of Blitar, a Gemeente had been formed in the region of Blitar 

shortly before that.  The extensive environmental devastation, inside the 

gemeente and the outer parts of the regency’s regions forced the regional 

government of Blitar Regency to allocate aids funds to handle the 

casualties, make the repairs and constructions of the facilities in the region 

of Blitar. 

 

Keywords: Eruption; Mount Kelud; Blitar. 
 

 

 

Introduction 

The great number of population with uneven distributions, disorderly spatial detail, 

the issues of deviating usage of natural resources, diverse tribes and tribal groups, 

religions, traditions, cultures, and the impacts of globalization and other complex 

social problems have existed in the country. This condition has consequently made 

Indonesian territories to become areas of potential disasters, both natural and man-

made calamities. Some of these are, among other things, an earthquake, tsunami, flood, 

landslide, hurricane, forest fire and volcanic eruption.  

Indonesia is known to be home of + 30% of the world’s active volcanoes. Based 

on the records of volcanic eruptions recorded in history, the Indonesian volcanoes may 

be classified into three types. Type A accounts for 79 volcanoes which have erupted 

since 1600. Type B represents 29 volcanoes which erupted before 1600, and Type C, 

amounting to 21 volcanoes composed of lapangasolfatara and fumarola volcanoes (Van 

Bemmelen, 1949:73). Based on the history of eruptions and combined with the physical 

characteristics, apex natural spans (bentang alam puncak),  volcanic structure, and types 

of the eruptions, the active volcanoes situated in Indonesia may be classified into eight 

Received:  

2 April 2017 

 

Accepted:  

18 May 2017 



types, the Tambora 1815 type (caldera eruption),  the Merapi type (lava dome crater), 

Agung type (open crater), the Papandayan type (collapsed craterwall), Batur type 

(post-caldera), Sangeangapi  type(lava flow), and the Anak Krakatau type (under-sea 

volcano). 

Mount Kelud is one of the most active volcanoes in Indonesia. Mount Kelud has 

erupted more than 30 times since 1000 AD. During the colonial period, Mount Kelud 

was recorded to have erupted many times, inter alia, in 1826, 1848, 1864, 1901 and 1919. 

During the Independent Era, Mount Kelud has erupted in 1951, 1966, and 1990 

respectively. Therefore, this volcano is recorded to have actively erupted, with short 

periodical gaps (9-25 years) (Reksowirogo, 1979:282-283). Every eruption of Mount 

Kelud has been ended with the formation of a lava blockage in its lava vent. Mount 

Kelud is also grouped as a stratovolcano, a volcano typified by its massive and 

explosive characteristics. 

One of Mount Kelud’s largest eruptions took place in 1919. In the illustrating 

words (perspective) of the Dutch geologist, G.L.L. Kemmerling, the eruption spewed 

ashfall and hot clouds which was, and still is, called wedhus gembel (for resembling the 

shape of a sheep’s fur (wedus gembel) . What attracts attention from the 1919 eruption 

is that Mount Kelud not only gushed hot clouds but also spewed hot lava previously 

deposited under the crater. The volume of the hot lava was then estimated to reach + 

40 cubic meters. And worse still, the eruption was accompanied with heavy rain 

resulting in the subsequent cold lava flow. The rain made the volume of water in the 

crater increase, and the cold lave flow brought with it different materials (objects), such 

as sand, gravels and stones flowing down along with the water from the crater. The 

flow devastated residential homes of the local residents. As a result, massive damages 

to the existing infrastructure that the lava passed through ensued.  

The hot lava spewed out of Mount Kelud eruption in 1919 was reported to have 

destroyed the areas of the plantations located on the slopes of Mount Kelud, Sumber 

Petung and Margomulyo plantations (Kemmerling, 1921:2-3). The hot lava spewed out 

carried with it other volcanic materials and mud which flowed down at a high speed 

and reached a distance of as far as 38 km from the tip of mount Kelud. The hot lava, 

which was followed by the cold lava, flowed through River (Kali) Lekso, River (Kali) 

Putih and finally entered River Brantas and had swept down all the areas where the 

flow had passed through in the region of Blitar. The lava flowing through River (Kali) 

Badak had caused major damages and claimed a number of casualties on its way, in 

the regions of Blitar and Srengat. The lava flow carried a lot of stones, sand, wooden 

remnants and other materials. These materials made the irrigation and water ways and 

bridges blocked. The subsequent results were the overflows of lava sweeping and 

inundating the regions and villages located in the surrounding areas. The day after the 

eruption, May 19th, 1919, the lava flow begun to reach the government center in the 

region of Blitar.  This condition forced the Dutch officials to evacuate and save 

themselves to higher locations. In relation to this situation, the train was prepared at 

Blitar train station to evacuate the refugees. Blitar train station became the assembly 



point for people who were then evacuating themselves. However, the station was not 

free from the flow of the cold lava, as a result, not all of the residents were evacuated.  

One of the main causes that made Mount Kelud Eruption of 1919 so devastating 

with catastrophic and fatal disasters was the flow of hot lava and subsequently 

followed with the cold lave streams, flowing down in great quantities and sweeping 

through the residents’ homes in the  villages located on the slopes of Mount Kelud 

because the embankments located on the rivers were unable to accommodate the 

volume of the oozed out lava. The Eruption of Mount Kelud in 1919 was so disastrous 

that the ash fall and quakes were suffered by people living in different regions in Java, 

such as Priangan (West Java), Banyumas, Semarang, Yogyakarta, Madiun, Rembang, 

Surabaya, Pasuruan and other places (Kemmerling, 1921:4). Based on the report from 

Junghuhn, the sound of the eruption heard in Banjarmasin on the island of 

Kalimantan.  

 Apart from the heavy casualty, claiming  + 5.000 the lives of people, the 1919 

Mount Kelud eruption also killed many of the local resident’s cattle and serious 

environmental  damages in the region of Blitar, including the infrastructure owned by 

the government of Blitar, the residents’ agriculture and privately owned plantations. 

Based on the historic background descriptions of Mount Kelud eruptions, the topics to 

be discussed in this thesis are as follows: 1. How Mount Kelud Eruption in 1919 

influenced the economic and environmental conditions in Blitar?  2. What factors 

made the eruption claim so many lives of people, cattle, and the damages to the 

residents’ crops?  3. What did the Government do to help the people inflicted by the 

calamity of the eruption of Mount Kelud in 1919? 

 

Method 

A number of colonial archive sources, classified as both primary and secondary 

sources, which are relevant and bearing evidencing properties and historical facts have 

been used in this study, which include, among other things: memorie van Overgave, 

Staatsblad van Nederlandsch-Indie. Apart from that, classified as secondary sources used 

include, among other things: Nota in zake de Maatregelen Getroffen op Verkeers Hygienisch 

en Economisch Gebied in door de Kloeteruptie van 19 op 20 Mei 1919, De KloetrGas Eruptions 

of the Kelut in 1919 Wedusgembels of the Kelut 1919 disadvantageous Effect of the ash rain of 

Mount Kelut in 1919 amp van 20 Mei 1919, The Outburst of the Mount Kelut in the night of 

May 19 th to 20 th 1919, Encyclopaedie van Nederlandsch-Indie. These sources were 

acquired from different places, primarily from Republic of Indonesia’s National 

Archive or Arsip Nasional Republik Indonesia (ANRI), Indonesian National Library or 

Perpustakaan Nasional Republik Indonesia (PNRI), Library of the Directorate of 

Volcanology and a number of other libraries. The collected data were then analyzed 

through the historical method and supported with the use of conceptual frame. As a 

work of historiography this study is confined within the spatial scope, which includes 

the region of Blitar and the temporal scope covering the 1919-1923 period or the era 

when this eruption Mount Kelud took place and then unrecovered economy.    

 



 

 

Results and Discussion 

Geographic and Demographic Conditions of Blitar  

Blitar is located in the Province of East Java. Geographically, it is located at 111 25’-112 

20’ East Longitude and 7 57-8 9’51 South Latitude, and is located southwest to the 

capital city of East Java Province at a distance of + 160 km. The region of Blitar is ± 160 

km away from Mount Kelud (Kerchman, 1905-1930:367-370). Because the western 

border of Blitar is near Kediri, when Mount Kelud erupts the lava flow usually passes 

this area. This geographical condition is caused by the fact that a river originating from 

Mount Kelud. The eruptions of Mount Kelud may cause instant damages but in the 

long run the volcanic ash will make the soil in Blitar very fertile. A number of rivers 

flow from Mount Kelud through the region of Blitar Regency, including  : (1) River 

Lekso; (2) River Putih; (3) River Lahar Badak (now Bendungan Badak); (4) River Temas 

(passing through Udanawu); (5) River Kali Kuning and River Lahar Blitar 

(Dingemans, 1923:3). 

In 1905 the population was + 342.000, in the Regency of Blitar of that time, the 

Chinese community  accounted for + 2200 and Europeans + 900 (Bleeker, 1844:315). 

The majority of the people then living in the region of Blitar Regency were farmers or 

plantation workers. The condition of the soil in the Gemeente of Blitar was not different 

from that of other areas in Blitar Regency, mostly consisting of regusol and litusol. Like 

other areas of Blitar Regency, the Gemeente of Blitar was located inside the region of 

Blitar Regency, some rivers also flowed through the Gemeente of Blitar, such as River 

Cari, River Urung-urung, River Tugu, and River Gedog. The population of the 

Gemeente of Blitar in 1905 was comprised of ± 24,371 indigenous people (87.52%), ± 674 

(2.42%) Europeans, ± 2,746 Chinese (9.86%) and other ethnic groups accounting for ± 

56 (0.20%), thereby totaling ± 27.846 (Grijns, 1979:33). As a seat of the government 

center, the gemeente and regency also housed a number of offices of the plantations and 

other companies located in the Gemeente of Blitar. This function was facilitated with 

the available infrastructure such as streets, bridges, train station, post office and other 

public facilities.  This flat and easily accessible plain and inter-relating to other areas 

made the Gemeente Blitar heterogeneously populated, apart from its role as a 

government, this region was a strategic location for controlling the activities in the 

plantations and companies owned by the Europeans.  

 

Eruption of Mount Kelud in 1919 

Mount Kelud is a volcano with a height of + 1.731 above sea level, it is located 70 56’ 

South Latitude and 1120 18’ point five East Longitude. Geographically, Mount  Kelud 

is located on the borders of  Kediri, Blitar, and Malang Regencies. The formation of 

Mount Kelud was the result of the subduction of Indo-Australia continental plate and 

Eurasia continental plate. Mount Kelud bears the typical characteristics of a 

stratovolcano with a crater lake and explosive eruptions. Mount Kelud , which bears 

a stratovolcano characteristic, or a conical in the bottom with its crater lake, when 



erupting this mountain will be able to spew a great quantity of lava, accompanied by 

the flow of hot water and from its crater lake.    

One of the greatest eruptions of Mount Kelud occurred on May 19th, 1919. This 

eruption has been considered to be the biggest in the twentieth century, and the crater 

of this mountain became wider. This subsequently raised the volume of the water from 

it previously had been, especially in the rainy season. The direct effects of the eruption 

of Mount Kelud was the great environmental damages in the region of Blitar, 

agricultural fields and crops, plantation, houses of the people and loss of lives. These 

damages were caused by the volcanic materials, consisting of ashfall, gravels, and 

water from the crater spewed out during the eruption. These indirectly reduced the 

harvests in the following years. The eruption took place the night of the 19th was still 

felt on May 20th, 1919. The morning suddenly became dark, the sun was not seen, with 

the rain of water, gravels and ash, and people became scared, the air heavy and dusty 

which made breathing difficult (Kemmerling, 1946). People were running here and 

there, trying to save their lives and belongings and cattle that could still be saved. The 

areas where the lava flow passed were, among others, Sanankulon, Nglegok, Srengat, 

Ponggok, Udanawu, Gandosari, and Talon (Koning, 1919:94). The water flow carried 

a great quantity of garbage which bloced waterways and irrigation ditches and 

bridges, so the water overflowed and inundated the surrounding villages. The great 

casualties consisted of humans, cattle, damaged plantation crops, houses and the 

facilities having been built by the government. Mount Kelud spewed + 40 cubic meters 

of water. The water was mixed with boulders and mud and flowed up to 38 kilometers 

away, sweeping large areas in the region of Blitar.  

Other sources mention that the water in the crater lake was starting to boil on 

May 19th, 1919 and the lake spilled out approximately 40 million cubic meters of water 

and the lava flowed over the villages located on the slope of the mountain.12 This hot 

water flowed down and hit the Badak Embankments (Tanggul Badak), destroying 

everything on its route. Five thousand people died instantly. Bodies with severe burns 

were reported carried down by the lava. This scary situation was worsened by the fact 

that Mount Kelud was at the same time spewing hot clouds (Harderwijk).  

The lava was intensely dangerous for the people living on the slopes on a 

volcano. Apart from the lava, the eruption of the mountain was also accompanied by 

ash falls blown airborne during the eruption. The ash was blown away by the wind to 

distances thousands of kilometers away. The thickness of the ash in different areas 

varied, as the direction of the wind became one of the aspects determining the impacts 

of Mount Kelud’s eruption in each different area. The eruption of Mount Kelud was 

not only perceivable in the region of Blitar but also suffered by most regions on the 

island of Java.  Some reports of the indirect effects of the eruption of Mount Kelud, and 

in particular the ash falls, are s follows: 1). Pasuruan, 2). Surabaya 3). Madiun, 4). 

Yogyakarta, 5). Rembang, 6). Semarang, 7). Banyumas,  and  8). Priangan. The 

explosion Mount Kelud was heard Bandung, Banjarmasin and other parts of 

Kalimantan (Kemmerling, 1921: E. 19-4). 

 



Socio-economic Impacts of the 1919 Mount Kelud’s Eruption 

Damages to the infrastructure in Blitar  

The infrastructure of a town or city or a region come in the form of streets, bridges, 

waterways or irrigation and so forth.  The so many infrastructure buildings in Blitar 

Regency damaged by the eruption Mount Kelud in 1919 included streets, bridges, 

buildings and houses (Verslag Burgerlijke Openbare Werken Nederlands, 1919-1920:176-

177, Decentralitatie Verslag, 1919-1920: 144, Dingemas, 1923:42-43). The damaged 

streets and bridges made communication and travels to and from other towns difficult 

and the  government affairs impeded. 

These damaged infrastructure facilities took a long time to restore. This caused 

declines in the economy of Blitar. The access to and from other towns was delayed, 

making the plantation yields and agricultural harvests impossible to be distributed to 

the customers. Moreover the products of the plantation and agriculture crops 

produced by the farmers and plantations in Blitars could not processed to give them 

added values, because the milling or processing facilities were located in Blitar, while 

the plantation and agriculture areas were located in rural areas. The eruption of Mount 

Kelud in 1919 not only caused damages to the public infrastructure but also destroyed 

a number of facilities and amenities in Blitar. The damages happened to: 

1) People’s houses and government buildings 

The damages to people’s houses were associated with the location of the houses 

which were on the river bank or places near the rivers where the lava from the 

eruption of Mount Kelud flowed. The damaged houses, both in the region of the 

regency and in the gemeente of Blitar itself  totaled  + 35,758, with Sanankulon 

Onder-district suffering the most, with 8.544 houses being destroyed,  among the 

11 under-districts and the number of damaged houses reached + 8.968, the highest 

number being in the under-district of Blitar. In addition to the damaged houses, a 

number of public buildings and facilities built by the government were also 

damaged.  These included the prison, post office and market.   

2) Streets 

Streets are a part of transportation facilities that relate one area to another. The 

1919 Mount Kelud Eruption made the streets in the region of Blitar damaged, 

including the railway relating Blitar to other towns and cities (Verslag Burgerlijke 

Openbare Werken Nederlands, 1919-1920: 167-177). 

3) Bridges 

The region of Blitar had many bridges because a lot of rivers pass through this 

region. The eruption of Mount Kelud damaged most of the bridges. The damaged 

bridges were Djagalan, Lekso, Glondong, Jembatan Kademangan, Blaroe, Bendo, 

Nglongsor, Binangun, Loading, Sawentar, Semoet, Konto, Djatilengger, and 

Pakunden bridges (Dingemas, 1923:42-43). 

 

Damages to agriculture and cattle 

The eruption of Mount Kelud in 1919 damaged the ambient environment. The 

eruption also claimed a number of human casualties, + 5235 people were reported 



dead.  In addition to human casualties, the eruption also destroyed + 103 villages in 10 

under-districts in the region of Blitar (Dingemas, 1923:11). Other damages happened 

to agriculture, plantations and cattle. The catastrophe claiming human lives was 

caused by two factors. First, the ash and gravel or stone rains occurred during the 

eruption. After the hot clouds, the ash and stone rain followed, causing damages to 

crops and plantations in the short term. Second, the cold lava flows destroyed and 

flooded the villages located in the surrounding areas. Apart from the human lives, 

cattle owned by the local residents were killed by the eruption of 1919 Mount Kelud 

eruption. These included cows, horses and goats. 

 

Table 1. Number of Cattle killed in 1919 Eruption 

Under-district Buffaloes   Cows Horses Goats  

Blitar    173      452 274      34 

Sanankulon 1,039   2,079 155      18 

Nglegok    524   1,231   32    123 

Srengat 1,617   4,018 141    205 

Ponggok 1,422   1,923 101    580 

Udanawu 2.287   2.922 188    475 

Gandosari    110      251     4    111 

Talon    272      376     5      25 

Total 7,444 13,252 900 1,571 

Source: Koning, 1919. 

 

The ashfall from the eruption of the volcano put weights on the leaves which in 

turn made the tree collapse, suffer from suffocation, lack of oxygen and finally die. 

This destruction did not only attack rice, corn and non-rice crops and even big trees in 

the forest and a lot bamboos collapsed for being unable to withstand the weight. The 

damages inflicting various crops resulted in the decreased agricultural harvests in the 

following (planting) periods (Dingemas, 1923:24).  In general, three years after the 

eruption the harvests in the district of Blitar still showed a decline. This decline 

occurred with corn, cassava, and tobacco. The harvest decline was associated with the 

damaged rice fields (sawah), irrigation system, and other facilities destroyed by the 

flow of cold lava during the 1919 Mount Kelud eruption. A different condition 

happened to some other types of crops, such as tubers, peanuts and soybeans which 

showed an increase after the eruption of Mount Kelud. The increase was probably 

caused by the fact these crops do not need much water, as the rice paddy does. Another 

factor, these three types of crops are highly adaptable to the soil then covered by 

volcanic ash layers. The other factor was the humans (farmers) themselves. 

The rice harvest in Srengat District in 1922 showed a decrease by 3,730 pikul (a 

unit of measurement equal 61.76 kilograms)  or  30% decrease compared to that of 1918 

(Dingemas, 1923:24). The district of Srengat suffered the greatest decline because this 

area was struck by the lava flow. A contrast occurred in the region of the District Blitar, 

after the eruption the rice harvest increased by 19,615 pikul. The agricultural areas in 



the District of Blitar were not affected by what happened in Srengat. Another factor 

that accounted for such increase was that the volcanic ash indirectly added the fertility 

on these agricultural areas. During the eruption the wind blew southward. 

 

Government efforts to overcome the aftermaths of Mount Kelud eruption 

1) Government’s steps to handle people, agriculture and cattle  

The Gemeente of Blitar and the Regency of Blitar had done their best to overcome or 

at least to lessen the suffering then inflicting the local residents. A lot of people died 

and were injured in the region of the following under-districts: Blitar, Nglegok, 

Srengat, Ponggok, Udanawu, Gandosari, and Talon. Many of the hospital in Blitar 

were unable to accommodate the victims, so the Government built emergency 

hospitals. Doctors, paramedics, medical equipment and supplies, medicine and 

ambulances from other areas outside Blitar were also called in (Koning, 1919:141). 

They were assigned to help the victims of the eruption of Mount Kelud in 1919. TO 

help the victims of 1919 Mount Kelud Eruption, some emergency medical facilities 

were built in several locations, including:  

a) Talon, an emergency hospital was built on May 21st, 1919 

b) Mangunan, an emergency clinic was built from May 22nd, 1919 to May 26th, 1919 

c) Bendo, an emergency clinic was built on May 26th, 1919 

d) Ponggok, an emergency clinic was built on May 26th, 1919 

e) Srengat, an emergency clinic was built from May 24th, 1919 to May 28th, 1919 

f) Nglegok, an emergency clinic was built on May 26th, 1919 

The medical treatments for the 1919 Mount Kelud casualties were also done in 

the existing hospitals, among others: 

a) H. V. A. Hospital in Toeloengredjo, 

b) Hospital in Kediri,  

c) Government and private hospitals in Blitar,  

d) Health Clinic in Kediri,  

e) Health Clinic in Tulung Agung,  

f) Health Clinic in Pare.  

The government spent + f 51,249 on medicine, funerals and clothes for this 

Mount Kelud Eruption. The government further gave  compensations amounting + 

f 59,6960 for the damages suffered by the people affected by the 919 Mount Kelud 

Eruption, given to the Europeans, Japanese, Indians, Chinese, Native Residents and 

Civilians or the villages’ administrators (Dingemas, 1923:11). 

In response to the Eruption of Mount Kelud, the then government of Blitar 

showed their concern to the affected people. To assist people, especially those living 

in the villages,  to be able to cultivate their agricultural land, the government 

provided + f 41,418 to buy agricultural tools and equipment, sewing machines, 

purchase of seeds to be planted, cattle, and to restore the forest in Bronkos. These 

efforts were made in order recover the economy and daily life of the people in Blitar 

as soon as possible. 

 



2) Government’s effort to repair the infrastructure 

The extensive damages to the infrastructure in the region of Blitar farced the 

government to respond. The Gementeraad decided to repair the streets on the funds 

acquired from the central Government. The destruction also caused a number of 

bridges to be damaged. The Government immediately repair these damaged 

bridges so that the transportation in Blitar might recover. The Government spent f. 

17,088 on the repairs of the streets and bridges. The funds were acquired from the 

government budget, government loans and donations from different parties and 

resources. The damaged bridges then to be repaired include, inter alia:  a).  Lekso 

Bridge for the town of  Wlingi, b). Glondong Bridge for Blitar, c). Kademangan Boro 

Bridge for Blitar, d). Blaroe, e). Bendo, f). Nglongsor, g). Binangoen, h). Sangoet, i). 

Pakoenden, j). Loding, k). Sawentar, l). Ganggangan, m). Semoet, n). Konto, o). 

Djatilengger bridges (Dingemas, 1923:42-43). The repairs to theses bridges took 

quite a long time. The Government spent a lot of funds to restore the condition 

destroyed by the 1919 Eruption of Mount Kelud, the funds spent amounting to + f 

118, 6740.  

The funds acquired to make the repairs to the infrastructure and facilities as 

well as the compensations for the victims of Mount Kelud’s eruption were 

enormous but on the contrast the Government’s finance was limited. The repairs to 

the damaged infrastructure and facilities caused by Mount Kelud eruption were 

made on the scale-of-priority basis. The fund resources were not only from the 

Government but also from the fundraising done by the people. In this case, the 

people spontaneously formed disaster- awareness associations or committees for 

Mount Kelud Eruption victims. The committees came from places outside Blitar, 

such as Surabaya, Malang and Yogyakarta (Kawan Kita, 26 Mei 1919:171). The fund 

aids were acquired from spontaneous night fairs, donations from cigarette factories, 

rice millings and other donators. The aids were not only in the form of cash but also 

in the form of clothes, blankets, food, medicine, and sheets of fabric. Apart from the 

direct aids to the victims of the disaster, the government also began to build tunnels 

at the feet of Mount Kelud, as an anticipation for the following eruptions of Mount 

Kelud. 

The Dutch Colonial Government built seven tunnels which functioned as 

buffers of the cold lava at the feet of Muont Kelud. The construction of these tunnels 

was started in 1923 and completed in 1926. These tunnels would reduce the debits 

of the cold lava from the crater of Mount Kelud, so that the quantity of the cold lava 

which might originally pass the residential homes of the people would be greatly 

reduced.  In this way, the casualty suffering from the erution of Mount Kelud may 

be minimized.   

 

Conclusion 

Indonesia is a highly prone to natural disasters. Indonesia has the most active 

volcanoes on earth. However, both Indonesian Government and people do not have 

sufficient sense of awareness toward natural disasters. This was/is proven with the 



eruption of Mount Kelud which happened in the night of May 19th, 1919. The region 

of Blitar was seriously affected by the volcanic eruption, in which many of the facilities 

and infrastructure were badly damaged. Thise condition covered all the areas located 

in the regency and Gemeente of Blitar. The destruction was caused by the characteristics 

of Mount Kelud eruptions, the explosive eruption (explosion) where volcanic 

materials were spewed out of the inner part of the mountain and fell onto these areas 

in Blitar, which was followed by the flow of hot lava mixed with other volcanic 

materials, passing through the residential homes of the people living in the region of 

Blitar, without any previous predicted warnings.  

 The eruption of Mount Kelud in 1919 shows that Indonesian people, and even the 

colonial government of that time, do not and did not have high awareness toward 

natural disasters, and in particular with regard to volcanic eruptions. This condition 

can be seen in the limited infrastructure development and construction located around 

Mount Kelud. As a result, a great number of the lives and material losses were 

unavoidable. The other indicator is the many residential locations situated on the 

slopes or at the foot of Mount Kelud, which are certainly disaster-prone. People prefer 

to live in fertile areas so that they may easily cultivate the land for agriculture. This 

preference has made areas close to rivers and having fertile soil layers their choice. 

This has also happened on the slope and foot of Mount Kelud. These people do not 

realize the potential dangers when Mount Kelud may erupt at any time. Another 

indicator is that there is no anticipation and obvious plans from the Government if 

Mount Kelud erupts at any time. The disaster of Mount Kelud’s eruption in 1919 has 

shown an interesting fact. The Colonial Government and people both had the high 

responsibility and social spirits. The government responded and quickly evacuated 

the victims of the eruption. The Government even provided the victims with aids, from 

material things to medical assistance. In addition, people also took the necessary steps 

to help the victims of the disaster caused by the eruption of Mount Kelud. It is shown 

in the so many volunteers who came from places outside Blitar, even from Singapore. 

These volunteers came to assist the Government to help or save the people of Blitar 

who were becoming the victims of the eruption of Mount Kelud. 

 Apart from directly assisting the victims of the eruption of mount Kelud, the 

Colonial Government also took steps to reduce the number of casualties. In 

anticipation to another eruption of Mount Kelud if the volcano erupts again, the 

colonial government built tunnels in the foot of Mount Kelud in 1923. These tunnels 

serve as the buffers of the flowing lava and reduce the volume of the water flowing 

down from the crater lake when cold lave flows down and passes the residents’ homes 

at the foot of  Mount Kelud.  

 

References 

Bleeker, Pieter, (1844). Bleekers Papers, 1844-1867, Volume 3.  

Decentralitatie Verslag, 1919 – 1920. 

Dingemans, L.F. (1923).  Nota in Zake De Maatregelen Getrofeen Op Verkeers, Hygienisch, 

En Economisch Gebied In De Kloeteruptie van 19 op 20 Mei 1919. Kediri.  



Grijns, C.D. (1979). A La Recherche du ‘Malayu Betawi’ ou Parler Malais de Batavia, 

Archipel, 17:135-136. 

Harderwijk,Vulkaanrampen in Ned. Oost-Indië, dalam http://www.quickiwiki. 

com/nl/Kelud, retrieved 10 April 2015. 

Kawan Kita, 26 Mei 1919. 

Kemmerling, G.L.L. (1921). Amount of Ejected Ash and Pumice of the Kelud Eruption in 

1919 E. 19. Bandung: Perpustakaan Direktorat Vulkanologi. 

___________ (1921). Gas Eruptions of the Kelut In 1919 Wedusgembels of the Kelut 1919 

Disadvantageous Effect of the Ash Rain of Gunung Kelut in 1919 E. 19-5. Bandung: 

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