Flight ban extended around Bali volcano

A VOLCANO spewing columns of ash and threatening a major eruption closed Bali’s airport for a second day yesterday, stranding thousands of tourists on the Indonesian island.

Mount Agung has been spouting volcanic material thousands of feet into the sky since the weekend, causing local authorities to delay reopening the island’s only airport, in Denpasar, for at least another 24 hours yesterday.

As flights were grounded, many sought alternative routes home, some boarding buses headed to an international airport in Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-biggest city.

By lunchtime yesterday, seismic activity levels were at the highest recorded on the mountain, suggesting an explosive event may be imminent.

Around 100,000 people have been told to leave their homes. However, there was remarkably little panic at the airport yesterday. Daniel Constable, 26, from Manchester, said he had been close to the volcano on Monday.

“I was up there, maybe just 1km [from the summit]. “I heard it rumble, I got scared and I turned away.

“I am supposed to fly with Qatar to Doha then to Manchester. I went to the Qatar desk. They are just trying to get everybody out.”