International airlines began cancelling flights en masse on Wednesday to and from the Indonesian island of Bali due to the eruption of the Lewotobi Laki Laki volcano.
Flight suspensions due to volcanic ash were announced by Australia’s Jetstar and Quantas on Wednesday. Virgin Airlines and AirAsia flights have also been cancelled.
At least 10 people have died as a result of the volcano’s eruption. Indonesian Centre for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation spokesman Hadi Wijaya said fiery lava and rocks rained down on villages about 4km from the crater, causing local homes to burn and damage. The volcano’s status was upgraded to the highest danger level. The local government declared a state of emergency for 58 days.
The prolonged volcanic activity this year has severely impacted the local economy. Cashew farmers complain that their crops have been destroyed by the huge amount of ash that has fallen on the surrounding area.
A total of 80 flights have failed since the beginning of November, including those from Singapore, Hong Kong and several Australian cities.
Lewotobi first erupted on November 3 and killed at least nine people. Since then, it has erupted repeatedly, with the volcano’s ash column reaching a height of 10 kilometres.
