Indonesia’s Anak Krakatau volcano erupts, strands thousands as flights cancelled

Indonesia’s Anak Krakatau volcano erupted early Sunday, prompting the cancellation of all flights at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport and disrupting other domestic airports as volcanic ash drifted across parts of western Indonesia. Indonesia’s Geological Agency said the volcanic island located in Indonesia’s Sunda Strait between the main Java and Sumatra islands had showed signs of activity since Friday before erupting for 30 seconds at 3:53 a.m. Sunday. Closed-circuit camera footage showed lava flares from the volcano.No casualties were reported and no evacuation order was issued. The nearest settlement is more than 16 kilometres (10 miles) away, but authorities warned residents and visitors to stay at least three kilometres (two miles) from the active crater.Volcanic ash spread across parts of Jakarta and Lampung province on Sumatra’s southern tip, Indonesia’s Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation said. Story continues below advertisement AirNav Indonesia closed airspace around Soekarno-Hatta and Halim Perdanakusuma airports in Jakarta, as well as six other airports, including Radin Inten II Airport in Lampung, because of volcanic ash.Thousands of ...