AKIPRESS.COM - An Indonesian disaster official says more than 120,000 people have left the region around the Mount Agung volcano on Bali, fearing it will soon erupt, AFPreported.

Nyoman Parwata, an official at the disaster mitigation agency’s command post in Bali, said Thursday the number of evacuees has swelled to about 122,500.

Villagers began leaving in the middle of last week, and the number of evacuees has swelled daily since Friday, when the volcano’s alert status was raised to the highest level.

An exclusion zone around the mountain extends as far as 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) from the crater in places, but officials say people farther from the volcano are also leaving.