Volcanic Eruption in Indonesia, 170,000 Flight Passengers Stranded

Darwin, 07 September: Air travel in Indonesia has been disrupted by ash from the eruption of Anak Krakatau volcano. As of Monday morning, seven airports, including those in the capital Jakarta, remained closed. Nearly 170,000 passengers have been stranded as a result.

The Ministry of Transportation said that volcanic ash had caused 1,558 flight delays at eight airports so far. More than 900 of those flights were to or from Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.

Operations at Jakarta’s main airport have been suspended until 6 p.m. local time on Monday. Several airports in the surrounding provinces of Lampung and West Java have also been closed.

Indonesian Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi said it was difficult to predict when air travel would return to normal because weather conditions remained changeable.

Anak Krakatau is located in the strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra. The volcano began erupting late Friday night, after which ash spread across Jakarta and surrounding areas.

On Saturday, powerful lava eruptions and loud explosions were heard from the volcano. The geological agency said the sounds could be heard from several hundred kilometers away. Multiple eruptions were also recorded on Sunday, with the latest occurring at 8:23 p.m. local time.

The volcano monitoring agency warned on Monday that further eruptions were possible in the coming days.

Operations at Soekarno-Hatta Airport were suspended after volcanic ash was detected in the air. Many passengers were forced to look for alternative flights.

The eruption has also affected schools in Jakarta. Many schools switched from in-person classes to online learning on Monday. City authorities have not said how long the arrangement will remain in place.

Volcanic ash has also reached Bandar Lampung, a city in southern Sumatra. Ash could be seen covering cars and accumulating along roadsides. Some shipping services have also been disrupted because of the volcanic activity.

Ships traveling through the strait separating Java and Sumatra have been instructed to proceed with caution. Vessels have been prohibited from entering an area within a three-kilometer radius of the volcano.

Lana Saria, head of the geological agency, urged people not to approach the volcano. She warned that materials ejected from the volcano could pose a serious danger to people in the area.

However, Lana Saria said there was no risk of a tsunami being triggered by the recent eruptions.

Anak Krakatau emerged from the sea at the beginning of the last century. It developed inside the enormous volcanic crater formed after the devastating 1883 eruption of Krakatoa. An estimated 35,000 people were killed in that eruption.

In 2018, part of Anak Krakatau collapsed, triggering a tsunami that killed 429 people and displaced thousands.

Indonesia lies along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” where collisions between tectonic plates make volcanic eruptions and earthquakes particularly common.

Sources: The Guardian, AP, Reuters