Mount Agung: Bali Airport Closed And 59,000 Passengers Affected By Cancelled Flights

Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Centre spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho issued the statement via a tweet this morning. 

"The alert status for Mount Agung has been raised from level three to level four from 6am Monday (27 November)," said Sutopo in a separate tweet. 

The Indonesian authorities have raised the alert on Mount Agung volcano to the highest level, widening the exclusion zone around the volcano to 10km. 

The Guardian reports that around 25,000 people living in the area have been evacuated since Mount Agung first began belching thick smoke last Tuesday, 21 November. 

"Continuous ash puffs are sometimes accompanied by explosive eruptions accompanied by a weak sound of boom. 

"The rays of fire are increasingly observed at night. This indicates the potential for a larger eruption is imminent," the national disaster agency said in a statement on its Facebook page today. 

However, Geological agency head, Kasbani, said that they are not expecting a big eruption but will continue to take the necessary safety measures and stay alert. 

"We got reports from pilots that volcanic ash has reached the area above the airport. We did an observation and found out that this is true. So, we decided to close the airport operation. 

"Although the closure is planned for 18 hours, we will evaluate every six hours," explained the head of the airport authority for Bali and East Nusa Tengarra area, Henson, as reported by The Daily Telegraph. 

Bali's major resort areas in Kuta and Seminyak are about 70 kilometres from the volcano. 

AirAsia said in their statement that affected guests would be notified of the flight status and the options available for flight changes via their registered email address.

AirAsia is offering two options, namely: 

1. Move flight - Change to a new travel time on the same route within 30 calendar days from original flight time without additional cost and subject to seat availability; OR

2. Credit account - Retain the value of your fare in a credit account for your future travel. The online credit account must be redeemed within 90 calendar days from the date of issuance.

The low-cost airline advised affected guests to keep themselves updated on the latest information regarding the Bali and Lombok flights cancellation by checking AirAsia's official website and its social media pages. 

"We also encourage guests to check their flight status through, 'Manage My Booking' feature on AirAsia's website," read the statement on Twitter.