Indonesia’s Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki erupts, Bali flights impacted

Flights to and from Bali have been cancelled or delayed after a volcano erupted on a popular Indonesia tourist spot. See flights affected.

Holiday plans for thousands of Aussie travellers were left in disarray after a volcanic eruption in eastern Indonesia forced airlines to cancel flights in and out of Bali on Wednesday.

All of Australia’s major airlines were forced to delay or cancel morning and afternoon services to and from Denpasar international airport as volcanic ash smothered the tourist island of Flores.

Both Jetstar and Virgin were forced to cancel early morning flights out of Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Sydney leaving holiday-makers stranded across the country.

Passengers look at an electronic board displaying cancelled flights at Ngurah Rai International Airport in Tuban, near Denpasar, after the nearby Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki volcano erupted, P)icture: Sonny Tumbelaka/AFP

“Four return flights have been cancelled this morning due to volcanic ash caused by Mount Lewotobi in Indonesia making it unsafe to fly,” a Jetstar spokeswoman said.

“We’re monitoring the situation and will provide updates if there are any further impacts to our schedule.”

Two Virgin return flights out of Brisbane and Melbourne were also canned while the airline monitored ash cloud activity after Tuesday’s eruption.

A villager watches the eruption of Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki as seen from Talibura village in Sikka, East Nusa Tenggara. Picture: AFP

“Guests travelling to or from Bali are encouraged to check the latest updates on their flight status via the Virgin Australia website or app,” a Virgin spokeswoman said.

Travellers on Qantas’ afternoon services out of Sydney and Melbourne experienced significant delays.

A spokeswoman for the airline confirmed two flights would be affected, but unlike Jetstar and Virgin flights this morning, were expected to depart when conditions had improved.

Laki Laki erupting with graphic

The country’s government agency, the Volcanological Survey of Indonesia (VSI), bumped the alert level to the highest of a four-tiered system and tourists were told to evacuate at 5.35pm local time on Tuesday.

In a statement, the VSI said: “The height of the eruption column was observed at approximately 10,000 metres above the summit. The ash column was observed to be grey with thick intensity.”

There were no immediate reports of damages or casualties but people have been told to stay away.

A senior adviser to Indonesia’s Ministry of Energy, which oversees the VSI, Muhammad Wafid, said residents and tourists should avoid carrying out any activities within at least 7km of the volcano’s crater and wear face masks.

But he warned of the possibility of hazardous lahar floods – a type of mud or debris flow of volcanic materials – if heavy rain occurs, particularly for communities near to rivers.

He also urged residents to wear face masks to protect themselves from volcanic ash.

Authorities have raised the alert level to the highest of a four-tiered system. Picture: AFP

National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) spokesman Abdul Muhari said in a statement late Tuesday that at least one village had to evacuate, without providing numbers, and ash rain was reported in several villages outside the exclusion zone.

Mr Muhari called on residents around the volcano “to evacuate to safe locations” as tremors were still being detected, which indicated ongoing volcanic activity.

Indonesia, a vast archipelago nation, experiences frequent seismic and volcanic activity due to its position on the Pacific “Ring of Fire”.

Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki erupted multiple times in November, killing nine people and forcing thousands to evacuate, as well as the cancellation of scores of international flights to Bali.

The eruption as seen from Lembata, Indonesia. Picture: AP

FLIGHTS IMPACTED BY VOLCANIC ASH

Airlines have cancelled flights due to safety concerns leaving travellers stranded in Indonesia and others unable to leave Australia for planned holidays and business.

One disgruntled traveller said after travelling almost five hours from regional South Australia for an early morning flight out of Adelaide, she now had to wait until Sunday to fly into Denpasar.

“We got up at 2.30am to be at the airport at 3.00am for a 6.15am flight and received an email at 3:55am,” Lisette Symons told this masthead.

“Until that time we had no idea what was going on … We are now flying out Sunday which means our holiday has been cut short by 4 days.”

“Some of us now have to drive the 4.5 hrs home and return (on) Saturday.”

People have been told to evacuate. The view from Maumere, Indonesia. Picture: AP

Another took to Facebook after her Adelaide flight was cancelled just five minutes before arriving at the departure lounge.

“Yep… our Jetstar flight this morning from Adelaide was cancelled … Notified 5 minutes before we arrived at the airport … Devastated,” Leah Joy said.

A spokeswoman for Qantas confirmed that no flights had been cancelled as of yet and that the airline would continue to monitor the situation.

Qantas flights delayed:

QF43 Sydney to Bali

QF45 Melbourne to Bali

Jetstar flights cancelled:

■ JQ 31/32 Melbourne to Bali return

■ JQ 57/58 Brisbane to Bali return

■ JQ 125/126 Adelaide to Bali return

■ JQ 39/40 Sydney to Bali return

Virgin Australia flights cancelled:

■ VA45 (Brisbane – Denpasar)

■ VA50 (Denpasar – Brisbane)

■ VA91 (Melbourne – Denpasar)

■ VA92 (Denpasar – Melbourne)

– with AFP

Originally published as Indonesia’s Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki erupts, Bali flights impacted