Indonesia's Laki Laki volcano on Mount Levotobi erupted, spewing huge columns of ash and smoke today, prompting the evacuation of several villages and canceling flights, including to the popular tourist island of Bali.
In several eruptions since last night, ash has been thrown up to 5.000 meters high.
The eruption that occurred yesterday afternoon created thick gray clouds at an altitude of 10.000 meters that expanded into a mushroom-shaped ash cloud visible up to 150 kilometers away.
The highest level eruption warning was issued yesterday and the danger zone from which people are advised to evacuate has been expanded to eight kilometers from the crater.
Staff from a volcano observation post located seven kilometers from the crater were also evacuated to avoid falling debris from the eruption.
Ash and debris fell in several places outside the danger zone, including in the villages of Boru, Heva and Batobuku.
Some residents of Nurabelen village in Ile Bura sub-district fled to evacuation sites in Congo to avoid the impact of the eruption, the National Disaster Management Agency said. A spokesman for the agency said some residents of a village about 12 kilometers from the crater also evacuated.
Due to the risk that volcanic ash poses to aircraft engines, dozens of flights were canceled today, including flights connecting Bali with Australia, Malaysia, India and China, according to the Bali International Airport website.
Flights were also canceled from Labuan Bajo International Airport, another tourist destination on Flores island, in East Nusa Tenggara province. The airport has not been closed.
Cancellations and delays affected thousands of passengers on Australian airline Jetstar, which flies daily between tourist hubs and several Australian cities, and the company said the ash was forecast to clear by later this afternoon and that it would resume its flights.
The 1.584-meter-high Levotobi Laki Laki volcano is one of two besides Levotobi Perempuan in Flores Timur district. It has had multiple eruptions and the danger level and no-go zone were raised several times before being raised to its highest level again yesterday.
The volcano erupted in November last year, killing nine people and injuring dozens, and later in March 2025.
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