Bali volcano latest: Airport remains SHUT for third day as 120,000 tourists left stranded

At least 120,000 visitors have been left stranded as Mount Agung continues to erupt huge clouds of ash and cold lava, closing Bali’s Ngurah Rai international airport and grounding flights.

Airport spokesman Arie Ahsanurrohim said: “Bali’s Ngurah Rai airport will remain closed until at least Thursday morning.”

Airlines flying between Australia and Bali also announced flights have been cancelled – volcanic ash can cripple jet engines.

Virgin Australia tweeted: “Due to the significant volcanic ash and current weather conditions, Denpasar Airport is currently closed. As a result, we have cancelled all flights between Bali and Australia today and Thursday 30 November.”

Bali's Mount Agung volcano erupting and airportGETTY

Bali’s international airport will remain closed for a third day as officials fear a huge eruption

Qantas’ Jetstar Airways commented: “All Wednesday Bali flights cancelled.”

AirAsia in a statement said: “Following safety advisory from local authority regarding the volcanic activity of Mt Agung, I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport (DPS) of Bali will remain closed today for incoming and outgoing flights.

“Therefore all AirAsia and AirAsia X flights to and from Bali on 28 November 2017 remain cancelled until further notice. In addition, flights from and to Lombok also remain cancelled today.”

Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific Airways, and Garuda Indonesia have also cancelled all flights to and from Ngurah Rai International Airport on Wednesday

Garuda Indonesia has resumed services to and from Lombok airport.

However, the code red warning for air travel was downgraded to orange – the second highest level – after initially being issued on Monday.

Indonesian officials have warned that hazardous ash erupting from Mt Agung volcano has been pulled across the island by a tropical cyclone near Java.

Massive winds from cyclone Cempaka, which has been churning off the southern coast of Java, have begun blowing the ash spewing from Mt Agung towards Bali’s popular beaches – which attract more than five million tourists each year.

An eruption with an ash cloud higher than 15,000 feet could be even more dangerous as government authorities warn an explosion is imminent.

Tourists stranded at Bali international airportGETTY

At least 120,000 visitors have been left strandedMount Agung continues to erupt huge clouds of ash

Bali’s Ngurah Rai airport will remain closed until at least Thursday morning

Airport spokesman Arie Ahsanurrohim


Gede Suantika from the nation’s Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation said such an eruption would likely send it into more populated areas.

According to Indonesia’s weather agency, the ash is expected to spread until the cyclone subsides in the next three days.

Mr Suantika added: “We’ve already advised people to wear masks.”

Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, a spokesman for Indonesia’s national disaster-mitigation agency, said: “The possibility for a bigger eruption is increasing.”

Indonesia has raised the volcano eruption alert to the highest possible level 4.

At least 22 villages are currently caught in the expected blast zone which could affect some 90,000 to 100,000 people.

According to the US Geological Survey’s volcano experts, volcanic ash can exacerbate pre-existing lung diseases such as asthma and bronchitis.

Prolonged exposure may raise the risk of silicosis or other chronic lung diseases.

The accumulation of ash can also cause roofs to collapse on buildings, killing any people trapped beneath.

Photos of Bali’s Mount Agung reveal massive cold lava sludge flooding the popular holiday island as fears grow the volcano is set to blow.

On Monday MAGMA Indonesia tweeted: “Tonight, for the first time a thermal anomaly was detected in the crater of Mount Agung by Nasa Modis satellite, about 70 megawatts of power.

“This indicates that a significant volume of magma had been on the surface.”