Indonesian vulcano alive, toll climbs to 44

Eruptions at Indonesia's deadly volcano appear to be intensifying as towering clouds of ash shot from the crater with a thunder-like roar, dusting towns up to 150 miles (250 kilometers) away and forcing motorists to switch on their headlights during the day.

The death toll climbed to 44 - with six more lives recorded in the last 24 hours - and the government repeated orders to airlines to stay clear of the unpredictable mountain.

Mount Merapi, which means "Fire Mountain," is one of the world's most active volcanoes.

But even those who have dedicated a lifetime to studying it have been baffled by its erratic behavior since it's first October 26 eruption, which has been followed by more than a dozen other powerful blasts and thousands of volcanic tremors.

They'd earlier hoped that would result in a long, slow release of energy.