2010 eruptions of Mount Merapi possible widening of the exclusion zone was considered to have the potential to affect the availability of departure options. It was noted that there had been a deterioration in air quality in Yogyakarta from ash falling on the city. It was cautioned that volcanic ash could cause breathing difficulties, particularly for people with chronic respiratory ailments such as asthma, emphysema, or bronchitis. The Indonesian Social Welfare Minister, Salim Segaf Al-Jufri announced on 19 November that the government planned to end the emergency response period for the Mount Merapi eruption disaster on 24 November. "We will maintain the emergency response period
Mount Merapi to be numerous, and the next day CVGHM raised the Alert Level to 2 (on a scale of 1–4). Lava from Mount Merapi in Central Java began flowing down the Gendol River on 23–24 October signalling the likelihood of an imminent eruption. On 25 October 2010, the Indonesian government raised the alert for Mount Merapi to its highest level (4) and warned villagers in threatened areas to move to safer ground. People living within a zone were told to evacuate. The evacuation orders affected at least 19,000 people; however, the number that complied at the time remained unclear to authorities.