Bali's main airport shuts as volcano alert rises

Bali's main airport has shut after the alert level on Mt Agung was raised to highest level of four.

Indonesia's disaster mitigation agency said it had raised the alert to the highest level four on Bali's Mount Agung volcano and warned residents in an 8-10 km radius around the volcano to evacuate immediately.

Hundreds of New Zealanders have been stranded as Mt Agung volcano continues to spew ash and smoke high into the sky.

"Grey ash and occasional weak blasts can be heard 12 km (seven miles) from the peak. Flames were visible at night which indicates a potential eruption could happen anytime," Indonesia's disaster mitigation agency said in a statement.

"In anticipation of the possibility and imminent risk of disaster, PVMBG (the Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Centre) raised Mount Agung alert level from three to four starting from 6 a.m. local time," it said in a statement.

The commercial director of House of Travel Brent Thomas said the situation is constantly changing and it could take days or weeks for flights to return to normal.

Flight Centre said around 1000 of its customers are either in Bali or on their way to the island.

 

 

Photo: AFP The volcano alert on Mt Agung has been raised to the highest level