By Geoffrey Thomas
Published Tue Nov 12 2024
Flights to and from Bali have been thrown into chaos by the eruption of the Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki volcano.
Jetstar, Virgin and Qantas have all cancelled services leaving thousands of travellers stranded and holidays ruined.
Passengers are urged to contact their airline for the latest situation which is changing daily as the ash cloud moves around with the winds.
The volcano sent towering columns of ash high into the air on Friday following the huge eruption that killed nine people and injured dozens of others.
But activity at the volcano on the remote island of Flores, in East Nusa Tenggara province, has increased since Monday's initial eruption, according to Channel 9 forcing the authorities to expand the danger zone.
The latest activity has seen the largest column of ash so far recorded at 10 kilometres high, Hadi Wijaya, the head of the Centre for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation, told a news conference.
Channel 9 reported that Wijaya said authorities on Thursday expanded the danger zone to a radius of eight kilometres on the northwest and southwest of the mountain slope as hot clouds of ash "are currently spreading in all directions."
