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The volcanic eruptions of Mt Merapi that began on 25 October in Indonesia's central Java region and continued on 3 November have displaced some 70,000 people, the government's national disaster management agency reports.
According to a UN multi-agency assessment from 28-30 October, the displaced are now spread out in 75 camps - soon to be 77.
Nine sites are in the city Yogyakarta, within 25km of the mountain; the remainder, housing more than 50,000 people, are farther away in central Java.
The survey noted little structural damage, still-functioning hospitals and food markets and tallied 38 recorded deaths and 28 injuries linked to the latest eruptions.
With the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) outstripping early local government estimates, IDP sites are over-capacity, with many of those fleeing the threat of more eruptions preferring to stay in concrete structures to avoid volcanic ash. The assessment noted an "urgent need" for better living conditions with the expected rains.
Poor rubbish collection, lack of sanitation facilities and a shortage of water containers and hygiene kits have made waste management a "potential issue", noted the assessment.
Overall, the government's volcano early warning system appears to have worked well, said the deputy director of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Knarik Kamalyan.
There are 150 active volcanoes in Indonesia, of which Merapi is one of the most active, according to the government's Centre of Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation.
Merapi is one of 16 volcanoes worldwide chosen in 1995 by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, an NGO devoted to volcano research and disaster mitigation, as a "decade volcano" to watch due to its volatility and proximity to an urban centre.
"The only thing is if eruptions happen in an unpopulated area, we wouldn't know about it. It all depends where the mountain is," said OCHA's Kamalyan.
Yogyakarta has an estimated population of 396,000 people as of the 2010 census.
On 3 November, Mount Merapi erupted again, spewing huge clouds of ash into the sky.
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