Travelers thinking of taking a holiday to Bali may want to make new plans, as a volcano eruption on the island has spewed huge plumes of ash into the sky.
Massive clouds of dark volcanic ash have spread as high as three kilometers into the atmosphere after Mount Agung began rumbling and erupting last week.
Alerts were raised to the highest level this week, while as many as 100,000 residents within a 7.5 kilometer radius of Agung have already been ordered to evacuate. Authorities warn that the volcano's first major eruption in 54 years is "imminent." The volcano is around 70 kilometers away from popular tourist areas (including Kuta).
Indonesia's transportation ministry earlier today announced that it would be closing down Bali Ngurah Rai International Airport (Denpasar International Airport) for a second day. The closure notice has been extended to Wednesday, November 29 at 7am, though could be extended again depending on the latest developments. Meanwhile, planes have been banned from flying above the territory.
On Monday, more than 400 flights were canceled because of the volcano, stranding nearly 60,000 passengers.
The airport on Bali's neighboring island of Lombok remains open for the time being, though it was temporarily shut down overnight last night due to the eruption.
Up to 10 nearby airports have been put on notice to receive passengers from diverted flights.
Flights to and from Depansar Airport were still available on several popular ticketing platforms (including Chinese ones) as of noon today, however we'll go out on a limb here and recommend not booking them.
[Image via BBC]
0 User Comments