TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Bali airport remains operational despite eruption
Change Size
This handout picture taken on July 2 and released by Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) shows Mt. Agung erupting in Karangasem, eastern Bali. (AFP/Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Bencana / Handout)
S
tate-owned airport operator Angkasa Pura (AP) I announced Tuesday morning that I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali will remain operational despite Mount Agung's latest eruption.
The company said that according to satellite data, as of 10 a.m. local time, volcanic ash had not reached the airspace around the airport, neither was it spreading toward the airport.
A paper test carried out at 9 a.m. local time showed there were no traces of volcanic ash in the area.
"Angkasa Pura I will keep on coordinating with related agencies," AP I corporate secretary Israwadi said in an official statement.
However, the company stated that it would equip the airport with a contingency plan for passengers.
The alert level for Mt. Agung was raised to Level III of the four-tiered volcano alert system after it spat out ash 2,000 meters high on Monday night. People in the area were advised to avoid staying within 4 kilometers of the volcano.
As a result of the eruption, authorities halted operations at Banyuwangi's Blimbingsari Airport in East Java until 3 p.m. on Tuesday, and Jember Notohadinegoro Airport, also in East Java, until 10 a.m. (bbn)
