Jakarta Airport Halts All Flights Amid Volcanic Ash from Anak Krakatau Eruption

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Indonesia’s Anak Krakatau volcano erupted early Sunday, prompting the cancellation of all flights at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport as volcanic ash drifted across parts of western Indonesia.

Indonesia’s Geological Agency said the volcanic island, located in the Sunda Strait between the main islands of Java and Sumatra, showed signs of activity on Saturday and erupted for 30 seconds at 3:53 a.m. Sunday.

There were no immediate casualties reported, and no evacuation order was issued. The nearest settlement is located more than 16 kilometers (10 miles) away. However, the agency warned residents and visitors to stay at least 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) away from the volcano’s active crater.

Volcanic ash spread across parts of the capital, Jakarta, and Lampung province on the southern tip of Sumatra island, according to Indonesia’s Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation.

“Due to increased activity from the Mount Anak Krakatau eruption, Soekarno-Hatta International Airport has temporarily suspended flight operations from 5:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.,” the airport announced in a travel advisory early Sunday.

Passengers at the country’s busiest airport sought refunds and reclaimed checked baggage as departure boards displayed a growing list of canceled flights.

Indonesia’s volcanology agency and the Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre in Australia identified two distinct ash clouds using satellite imagery.

The first plume rose to an altitude of 20,000 feet (6,100 meters) while drifting northeast, affecting parts of Jakarta, Banten, West Java, and surrounding waters.

A second cloud reached 50,000 feet (15,200 meters) and was moving westward and northwestward, covering parts of Banten, Lampung, and Bengkulu provinces, the southern Sunda Strait, and sections of the Indian Ocean west of Sumatra.

The explosive collapse of Anak Krakatau previously caused a devastating tsunami in 2018 that killed at least 430 people in Sumatra and Java.

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