Indonesia’s Anak Krakatau volcano has erupted and remains seismically active, stranding approximately 270,000 passengers across the country after volcanic ash forced more than 2,000 flight cancellations and extended airport closures into a second day.
The volcano, located 150 kilometres from Jakarta, began erupting late on Friday, producing lava fountains and sending ash plumes into the capital and the surrounding Lampung province.
In response, Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport and three other airports have extended their closures until 18:00 local time on Monday. During this period, authorities will continue conducting ash spread tests every 30 minutes to monitor conditions.
Indonesia’s Geological Agency warned on Monday that “the probability of further eruptions in the coming periods remains high”. Volcanic ash reached 6,000 metres on the Java side of the volcano and 15,000 metres on the Sumatra side. Schools in affected areas moved classes online and some shipping operations were also disrupted. Authorities have prohibited vessels from entering a 3-kilometre exclusion zone around the active crater. Further warning the public against approaching the volcano.
The human cost of the disruption is visible at airports across the country. Queues snaked through departure halls in Jakarta as stranded passengers sought refunds and pressed airlines for departure updates.
Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi said authorities could not provide a timeline for when the closures would end.
“We cannot ascertain when this will end due to the dynamic weather,” he said.
There is no tsunami warning associated with the current eruption. Most importantly, Authorities are monitoring the situation closely given Anak Krakatau’s history. In December 2018, a partial collapse of the volcano triggered a tsunami that killed more than 400 people and displaced and injured thousands on the nearby coastlines of Sumatra and Java.
Anak Krakatau, which means Child of Krakatoa, emerged in the early twentieth century from the caldera left by the catastrophic 1883 Krakatoa eruption. It has been sporadically active ever since.
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