Volcano spews searing ash after lull

A deadly volcano in Indonesia started spewing another searing cloud of ash down its slopes today after a lull in activity.

Monitoring official Subandrio said the new blast came after thousands of people who had fled the area rushed back to check on their homes. Their fate is still unclear.

Mount Merapi began erupting on Tuesday, forcing more than 50,000 to evacuate. The blasts have so far killed 38 people as Indonesia struggled to respond to a tsunami created by a 7.7-magnitude earthquake hit remote islands and killed nearly 450.