Over 50 other people were admitted to hospital with burns and other injuries.

Many of the dead were children from Argomulyo village, 11 miles from the crater of the volcano, according to witnesses and emergency response officials.

Men with ash-covered faces streamed down Mount Merapi on motorcycles followed by truckloads of women and crying children, following the massive eruption.

Almost 70,000 villagers have been evacuated from a six-mile radius around the volatile volcano, which has been spewing lava and clouds of ash almost continuously. The powerful blasts have hampered efforts to bring aid to those who fled their homes and are now living in makeshift camps.