Jakarta Globe is reporting that Indonesia’s weather agency BMKG reported no volcanic ash from Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki in East Flores, detected in Bali’s airspace on Thursday (14/11/24,) as a result, flights at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport have returned to normal operations after the previous day’s cancellations, which affected 90 domestic and international flights.
“Satellite imagery shows no spread of volcanic ash over Bali,” said Pande Putu Hadi Wiguna, Data and Information Coordinator at BMKG’s Ngurah Rai Meteorological Station, in Badung, Bali, on Thursday.
To verify the satellite data, BMKG conducted a “paper test” using black paper in the airspace near I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport at 6 a.m. local time. The test results confirmed no presence of volcanic ash, consistent with the satellite readings.
According to Jakarta Globe, flight operations at Bali International Airport have since resumed smoothly. An international arrival from Perth, Australia, via AirAsia landed at 8:40 a.m. local time, followed by a departure to Hong Kong at 8:15 a.m.
On Wednesday (13/11/24,) several airlines preemptively canceled flights due to concerns over the volcanic ash from Mount Lewotobi’s eruption, which has affected the East Flores area since November 4. On Wednesday, 90 flights; 26 domestic and 64 international, were canceled at Ngurah Rai Airport due to safety concerns.
Canceled international routes included flights to and from Singapore, Hong Kong, Doha, Delhi, Bangalore, Darwin, Sydney, Melbourne, Kuala Lumpur, Brisbane, Pudong, Gold Coast, Perth, Cairns, Adelaide, and Incheon, says Jakarta Globe.
The ongoing eruption of Mount Lewotobi has forced over 13,000 residents to evacuate, as the 1,584-meter-high volcano continues to emit dense ash columns, some reaching up to 9 kilometers.
Source: Jakarta Globe
Stock photo by Fasyah Halim on Unsplash
