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Indonesia volcano eruption: 300 flights hit, schools shut as ash soars 50,000 feet
Airport operator said the suspension hit 301 flights, including 58 international services, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded at Indonesia’s main airport.
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An eruption of Indonesia’s Mount Anak Krakatau sent volcanic ash soaring up to 50,000 feet over parts of Java and Sumatra on Sunday, disrupting air travel and affecting hundreds of flights.
The eruption also led to some school activities and fishing trips being cancelled as ash spread across nearby areas.
301 flights affected
Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Jakarta suspended flight operations until 1.30 pm local time because of volcanic ash, Reuters reported. Airport operator Angkasa Pura said the suspension affected 301 flights, including 58 international services, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded at Indonesia’s main airport.
The airport halt followed runway checks conducted between midnight and 1 am that confirmed dangerous volcanic ash accumulation, ANI reported. Air navigation authorities later extended the operational suspension to ensure runway safety.
Reuters reported that Singapore Airlines cancelled flights to and from Jakarta for the rest of Sunday, while warning that further changes could be necessary as ash clouds continued to drift across Indonesian flight routes.
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AirAsia also cancelled or rescheduled multiple flights operating to and from Jakarta after Soekarno-Hatta suspended operations. Garuda Indonesia similarly asked passengers to check their flight status and official digital channels before travelling to the airport.
Passengers stranded
Several passengers were left waiting at Soekarno-Hatta amid the cancellations and delays. Reuters reported that one passenger, 58-year-old Suhardi, arrived at the airport after his domestic flight was cancelled, hoping to catch a connecting flight to Samarinda on the Indonesian part of Borneo. He later found that the Jakarta-Samarinda service had also been cancelled.
French national Eloan Tasset, 21, told Reuters that Batik Air had informed him that his flight to Manado in North Sulawesi was delayed, but he did not know how long the delay would last.
Schools, fishing affected
The disaster mitigation agency BNPB said it would conduct a weather modification operation, which could include cloud-seeding, to promote rainfall and help clear volcanic ash.
Several schools had cancelled activities on Saturday after students and residents experienced eye irritation from the ash, while fishermen also called off fishing trips, local media outlet Kompas reported.
BNPB urged people to remain calm but vigilant, advising those affected by ashfall to wear masks and eye protection, reduce outdoor activity, cover water sources and exercise caution while driving because ash can reduce visibility.
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Five volcanoes at alert level 3
Anak Krakatau has been erupting since late Friday and has been on alert level 3, the second-highest level, since July 2, Reuters reported. Four other Indonesian volcanoes, Mount Semeru, Mount Merapi, Lewotobi Laki-laki and Sinabung, are also at alert level 3.
Mount Semeru, around 850 km from Anak Krakatau, erupted on Sunday and sent an ash column 1 km above its summit. The volcano monitoring agency PVMBG advised residents to stay at least 5 km from its crater and warned of hot ash clouds and lava flows extending up to 17 km from the summit, Reuters reported.
Authorities said there was no immediate tsunami threat from Anak Krakatau. The volcano emerged about a century ago from the area once occupied by Krakatau, whose catastrophic 1883 eruption killed more than 36,000 people in a series of tsunamis. In 2018, an Anak Krakatau eruption triggered a tsunami that killed more than 400 people on Java and Sumatra, Reuters reported.
(With inputs from Reuters and ANI)
