Authorities in Indonesia have extended the closure of Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport and three other airports until 18:00 local time on Monday following a volcanic eruption that has stranded approximately 270,000 travelers. The disruption has resulted in the grounding of more than 2,000 flights as volcanic ash continues to affect airspaces across the region.
Anak Krakatau, situated in the Sunda Strait roughly 150km from Jakarta, began erupting late Friday. The event produced lava fountains and sent ash clouds over the capital and into Lampung province. Seismic monitoring indicated the volcano remained active throughout the weekend, with the most recent explosion recorded at 20:23 on Sunday.
Volcanic ash plumes reached altitudes of 6,000 meters on the Java side and 15,000 meters on the Sumatra side, according to the meteorological agency BMKG. In response, schools in affected areas shifted to online learning and some shipping operations were halted.
Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi stated that authorities are conducting tests every 30 minutes to monitor whether the ash spread is expanding or diminishing. He noted that it is difficult to predict when the closures will end due to dynamic weather conditions.
At Soekarno-Hatta International, long queues formed in departure halls on Monday as frustrated passengers sought refunds and flight updates. Among them was Amir Hamzah, a newlywed Malaysian tourist who had arrived in Bali a week prior. He told Bernama news agency that he and his wife were informed their next flight back to Kuala Lumpur would not depart until September 11.
“We only prepared enough money for our honeymoon and were supposed to go home yesterday,” Hamzah said. “We thought we would just sleep at the airport for a few hours and then take the morning flight home. We never thought we would end up being stuck here for days.”
Meanwhile, Suhardi, a 58-year-old traveler bound for Lampung on business, expressed resignation to the situation. “This is nature, after all. So I have to accept it,” he told Reuters.
The Geological Agency of Indonesia warned that the probability of further eruptions remains high. Officials have established a 3km exclusion zone around the active crater, prohibiting both close approach and maritime traffic in the Sunda Strait. Authorities confirmed there is currently no tsunami warning linked to the volcanic activity.
Anak Krakatau, which translates to “Child of Krakatoa,” emerged from the sea within the caldera left by the massive 1883 eruption of Mount Krakatoa. It has been sporadically active since the beginning of the 20th century. In December 2018, a collapse of the volcano triggered a tsunami that killed over 400 people and injured thousands along the coastlines of Java and Sumatra.
The eruption occurs within the Pacific Ring of Fire, a zone encompassing 40,000km of tectonic activity around the Pacific Ocean. This area is responsible for approximately 90% of the world’s earthquakes and contains 75% of its active volcanoes, including the 452 individual active sites tracked in the region.
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