The Anak Krakatau eruption has stranded about 270,000 passengers across Indonesia after volcanic ash disrupted air travel and forced more than 2,000 flights to be grounded.
The volcano, located around 150km (90 miles) from Jakarta in the Sunda Strait, began erupting late on Friday, producing fountains of lava and sending ash into the skies over Jakarta and Lampung province. The volcano remained active throughout the weekend.
Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport and three other airports extended their temporary closures until 18:00 local time on Monday after volcanic ash was detected in nearby airspace.
Anak Krakatau eruption disrupts flights
Long queues formed inside Soekarno-Hatta International Airport as passengers sought refunds, alternative travel arrangements and information about when flights could resume.
Finna, 46, was travelling from Malang in East Java to Jakarta when her flight was repeatedly rescheduled. She told BBC Indonesian that the airport became increasingly crowded as passengers from earlier flights remained stranded while those booked on later services waited for updates.
Rather than continue waiting, she travelled overnight by two intercity trains and eventually reached Jakarta at about 03:00 on Monday.
Other international travellers have also been caught up in the disruption. Jo Shaw, who was visiting Indonesia with members of conservation charity Save the Rhino International, said her group had abandoned plans to camp at Java’s Ujung Kulon National Park after authorities raised the volcano’s alert level.
A newly married Malaysian couple who had spent a week in Bali were also affected. Amir Hamzah, 29, said the couple had expected to fly home on Monday but were told their next available flight to Kuala Lumpur would not be until 11 September.
Volcanic ash reaches high altitudes
Indonesia’s Geological Agency warned on Monday that the possibility of further eruptions remained high.
The country’s meteorological agency, BMKG, reported that volcanic ash had reached altitudes of up to 6,000m on the Java side of the volcano and 15,000m over the Sumatra side and parts of Banten province in western Java.
The latest eruption was recorded at 20:23 local time on Sunday.
Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi said authorities could not determine when airport closures would end because weather conditions remained changeable. Officials were carrying out checks every 30 minutes to determine whether the ash cloud was expanding or beginning to clear.
Authorities impose safety restrictions
Authorities have prohibited people from approaching or carrying out activities within 3km of Anak Krakatau’s active crater.
Ships travelling through the Sunda Strait have also been barred from entering the 3km exclusion zone around the volcano. Officials have confirmed that the current eruption has not triggered a tsunami warning.
Anak Krakatau, meaning “Child of Krakatoa”, emerged from the sea in the early 20th century inside the caldera created by the catastrophic 1883 eruption of Mount Krakatoa.
The volcano collapsed in December 2018, causing a major tsunami that killed more than 400 people and left thousands injured or displaced along the coastlines of Java and Sumatra.
The Anak Krakatau eruption is occurring in a region heavily influenced by tectonic activity. Indonesia lies within the Pacific Ring of Fire, a vast zone stretching roughly 40,000km (25,000 miles) around the Pacific Ocean and containing many of the world’s active volcanoes and earthquake zones.
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