Vacation island of Bali affected Volcanic eruption in Indonesia affects international air traffic
The Lewotobi Laki-Laki volcano in Indonesia is still not calming down and is spewing ash into the sky. Now there are the first flight cancellations on the popular vacation island of Bali.
13.11.2024, 04:50
13.11.2024, 05:19
dpa
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- The constant eruptions of the Lewotobi Laki-Laki volcano on the Indonesian island of Flores are now also disrupting international air traffic in other regions.
- Several airlines announced on Tuesday that they would be canceling flights from the vacation island of Bali to Australia.
- The decision was taken for safety reasons due to the immense masses of ash above the mountain of fire.
The repeated eruptions of the Lewotobi Laki-Laki volcano on the Indonesian island of Flores are now also disrupting international air traffic in other regions. Several airlines announced on Tuesday that they would be canceling flights from the vacation island of Bali to Australia. The decision was taken for safety reasons due to the immense masses of ash above the mountain of fire.
"Due to the volcanic ash emitted by the Lewotobi volcano in Indonesia, it is currently unsafe to fly to and from Bali," the airline Jetstar announced. The situation is being closely monitored. As soon as the situation in the sky improves, flights to and from Ngurah Rai Airport in Denpasar, Bali, will resume.
Virgin Australia also suspended flights. A Qantas plane on its way to Australia had to turn back halfway, according to a report by Sky News. Bali is only about 500 kilometers away from the province of East Nusa Tenggara, where the volcano is located.
Kilometre-high ash column
Since then, there have been numerous other eruptions, some of them massive. At times, the ash column reached a height of almost ten kilometers. The authorities set up an exclusion zone with a radius of seven kilometers and asked the population and tourists to wear masks.
The most severe eruption to date occurred ten days ago, when Lewotobi Laki-Laki hurled ash and red-hot rock for miles. At least nine people lost their lives when their homes went up in flames. Thousands of people were evacuated and housed in emergency shelters.
Local air traffic has been affected for some time - initially two smaller airports on Flores and then the international airport in Labuan Bajo had to close temporarily. The entire region is covered in a thick layer of ash.
Geological peculiarities
The world's largest island nation, Indonesia, lies on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, the most geologically active zone on earth. The island of Flores, to the east of Bali, is popular with tourists from all over the world because of its beautiful landscapes and diving spots.
The 1584-metre-high Lewotobi Laki-Laki has been active again since the end of 2023. It is the twin volcano of the 1703-metre-high Lewotobi Perempuan. The peaks of the two mountains are around two kilometers apart.