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🇦🇺 Australia /Disasters & Emergencies

Jakarta flights disrupted by volcanic eruption, but Bali travel continues

From ABC Australia · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Explainer Named sources Ongoing story
  • Mount Anak Krakatau erupted several times, sending ash clouds as high as 15 kilometers over parts of Java, Sumatra and nearby waters.
  • Eight airports had closed by Sunday evening, prompting 1,558 flight cancellations, most involving Jakarta, while Bali-Australia flights continued.
  • No casualties or evacuation order were reported, but officials said the risk of further eruptions remained high and could not predict when flights would resume.

Ash from Mount Anak Krakatau has disrupted air travel across Indonesia, grounding flights to and from Jakarta while leaving Bali connections with Australia operating normally.

The volcano sits on a small island between Java and Sumatra, west of Jakarta and its Soekarno-Hatta International Airport. Indonesia’s Geological Agency said it had shown signs of activity since Friday. It erupted for 30 seconds early Sunday, followed by a 16-second eruption about three hours later. The latest eruption occurred at about 8:20 p.m. local time on Sunday.

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

· Indonesia’s volcano monitoring agencyThe agency assessed the risk after several eruptions and the spread of ash clouds.

Indonesia’s volcano monitoring agency said the likelihood of more eruptions remained high. Satellite images identified two ash clouds. One rose to about six kilometers and drifted northeast across Jakarta, Banten, West Java and nearby waters. Another climbed above 15 kilometers, spreading over parts of Banten, Lampung and Bengkulu, the southern Sunda Strait and the Indian Ocean west of Sumatra.

No casualties were reported, and authorities did not order an evacuation. Ash nevertheless reached parts of Jakarta and Lampung province. Indonesia’s disaster mitigation agency said there was no immediate tsunami threat.

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

· Dudy PurwagandhiIndonesia’s transport minister said officials could not predict when flights would resume.

By Sunday evening, eight airports had closed and airlines had cancelled 1,558 flights, most of them to or from Jakarta. Qantas confirmed that flights between Bali and Australian airports were unaffected, and no Virgin Australia flights on those routes had been impacted, according to ABC. Qantas listed flights QF39, QF40, QF41 and QF42 as affected and said it was assisting customers. Singapore Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia and Lion Air Group also cancelled flights.

Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi said officials could not determine when the disruption would end because of changing weather conditions. Qantas said its meteorologists and operations teams were monitoring conditions around Jakarta and their effect on flights.

Our meteorologists and operations teams are closely monitoring conditions in and around Jakarta and any impact on our operations.

· Qantas spokespersonQantas described how it was monitoring the ash cloud and flight disruption.
About this summary

Originally published by ABC Australia in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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