Eight Indonesian airports remain closed as Anak Krakatau ash disrupts flights

Eight airports in Indonesia, including two serving Jakarta, remained shut on Monday as volcanic ash from Mount Anak Krakatau continued to disrupt air travel and spread across the capital and nearby areas.

Jakarta’s main airport was scheduled to stay closed until 6 p.m. local time, its operators said on Instagram. Seven other airports, including those serving the nearby provinces of Lampung and West Java, were to remain closed until at least 8:59 a.m. The transport ministry said flight cancellations had affected 170,000 people.

“We cannot ascertain when this will end due to the dynamic weather,” Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi said in a statement. The volcano monitoring agency recorded the latest eruption at 8:23 p.m. on Sunday and warned that “the probability of further eruptions in the coming periods remains high.”

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We cannot ascertain when this will end due to the dynamic weather.

Ash reached altitudes of up to 20,000 feet on the Java side of the volcano and 50,000 feet on the Sumatra side, as well as parts of Banten province, the meteorological agency BMKG said. The disaster agency advised people to wear masks while outdoors, while schools in Jakarta and Lampung moved classes online to reduce health risks.

Anak Krakatau, meaning “child of Krakatau,” began emerging about a century ago from the area occupied by the older Krakatau volcano. Krakatau destroyed itself in massive eruptions in 1883, triggering tsunamis that killed more than 36,000 people. Indonesia lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire, where earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur frequently.

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The probability of further eruptions in the coming periods remains high.