These terrifying photos show massive lava flows surging down the rivers surrounding Bali’s erupting Mount Agung, as fears grow the volcano is set to blow.
The mountain has been hurling clouds of volcanic ash 3km into the atmosphere since the weekend and red hot lava is welling up in the crater.
Cold lava flows, also known as lahar, have already flooded the rivers and canals of nearby villages, with many locals ignoring warnings to steer clear.
‘Watch out for lahar floods around Mt Agung,’ agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho wrote on Twitter on Monday.
Terrifying photos show massive cold lava flows surging down rivers surrounding Bali’s erupting Mount Agung
Cold lava flows, also known as lahar, have flooded the rivers and canals of villages close to the erupting mountain
People are pictured watching cold lava from Mount Agung eruption flowing at Karangasem
‘Lahar floods have already occurred in several places on the slopes,’ he added, urging people to avoid nearby river areas.
Extraordinary photos show masses of volcanic sludge surging through riverbeds as locals film the frightening scenes.
Indonesia has raised the volcano to the highest level, as locals are told to flee for their lives and thousands of travellers are left stranded at the airport.
Some locals have ignored warnings to steer clear rivers sorrounding Mt Agung
Australian travellers heading to and from Bali will face another day of disruption on Tuesday as airlines closely monitor the ash cloud.
More than 400 flights to and from Bali were cancelled and nearly 60,000 travellers have been stranded.
The normally bustling airport on the Indonesian resort island of Bali is a near-ghost town, dotted by anxious Australian tourists desperate to get home.
The airport’s initial closure was for 24 hours until early Tuesday, but it is expected to stay closed for another day.
On Monday night, tourists settled down for the night on makeshift beds on the airport’s dusty floors.
Some were considering making the more than 10-hour journey to Surabaya and catching a series of flights across Indonesia back to Australia.
All are frustrated by what they say is a lack of updated information from their airlines about what happens next.
A general view is pictured of Mount Agung during an eruption seen from Kubu sub-district
Extraordinary photos show masses of volcanic sludge surging through riverbeds as locals film the frightening scenes
Passengers gather at the Gusti Ngurah Rai International airport in Denpasar as all flights were cancelled
The first Janeen McKay heard about flight cancellations was in a text from her brother back in Australia as she was on her way to Bali’s airport.
‘I had nothing from Jetstar, they had my mobile number,’ the West Australian told AAP.
After a 12-hour wait at the airport, she’s now been told she won’t be able to get home until Saturday at the earliest.
‘We had a really nice time in Bali but then we get here and this has just ruined it,’ Ms McKay said.
‘Why does it take five days to get us out of here? Not very happy.’
Ms McKay, an office manager, is keen to get back to Geraldton, north of Perth, to take over the care of her elderly mother from her sister, a nurse, who’s needed back at work on Thursday.
Veronika Naberezhnova is also non-plussed.
‘It’s a bit annoying,’ the Department of Human Services worker said.
‘My family’s waiting there (in Sydney) as well, they’re all waiting, they’re all stressed.’
On the other side of Bali, at Sanur beach, the distant crackle of lightning and an afternoon rain shower were the only annoyances for tourists lounging on sun beds and sipping cocktails.
The airport’s initial closure was for 24 hours until early Tuesday, but it is expected to stay closed for another day
Mount Agung belched smoke as high as 1,500 metres above its summit, sparking an exodus from settlements near the mountain
Passengers gather at the Gusti Ngurah Rai International airport in Denpasar after flights were cancelled
Jetstar has cancelled all flights to and from Bali and will reassess the situation on Tuesday
For them, the airport’s closure means an extended holiday.
‘What’s to be annoyed about, getting stuck here,’ said Simon Allan, whose flight to Perth was cancelled because of the ash cloud.
‘We have no control of nature and we’ll just go with the moment and see what happens tomorrow,’ his partner Deborah Flynn told AAP.
Scientists say Mount Agung’s volcanic activity could escalate further over the coming days meaning planes could stay grounded with thousands unable to fly in or out of Bali.
Carriers Jetstar and Virgin Australia will reassess the situation later on Tuesday.
An empty Bali International Airport is seen after volcanic ash forced its closure on Monday
Jetstar has cancelled all flights to and from Bali, as has Virgin Australia.
Jetstar acknowledged ‘further disruptions are possible this week depending on weather conditions’.
Affected Jetstar customers have been given the option of flying to destinations including Phuket, Singapore, Fiji or Tokyo at no additional cost.
Other major airlines are all monitoring the situation but are unable to fly until the massive ash cloud dissipates.
Flights from other Indonesian airports were experiencing delays on Monday because Bali’s Gusti Ngurah Rai airport is a national hub with many transiting flights.
The airport’s initial closure was for 24 hours until early Tuesday, but there could be prolonged or repeated disruptions
More than 400 flights to and from Bali were cancelled and nearly 60,000 travelers have been stranded
Thick clouds hide the volcanic ash billowing out of Mount Agung at Sanur Beach on the island
The travel disruptions will ripple around the globe as the island is one of Asia’s top destinations, attracting five million visitors a year. December through the first week of January is one of the island’s busy periods.
But the popular tourist areas of Kuta and Seminyak and the airport are about 70 kilometers (43 miles) from the volcano and largely safe even with a major eruption though masks and goggles could prove necessary if there’s significant ash fall.
Activity at the mountain has ramped up in recent weeks culminating with the cancellation of flights in and out of Bali this week due to a large ash cloud thrown up by the volcano.
Indonesia has raised its alert for Mt Agung to the highest level, warning of the risk of a lava eruption is ‘imminent’.
Mount Agung, which sits more than 3,000 metres high over eastern Bali, last erupted in 1963 killing more than 1000 people and razing several villages.
Authorities have ordered up to 150,000 people to leave a danger zone that extends 10 kilometers from the crater in places and tourists shouldn’t enter it.
Up to 150,000 people have been urged to evacuate areas within a 10 kilometre radius of Bali’s Mt Agung amid the issuing of its highest danger alert on Monday
The area, which includes a much-visited Hindu temple on the slopes of the volcano, will be prone to deadly mudflows and lava.
A danger zone was expanded Monday morning amid issuing of the volcano’s highest alert, with heavy rain sending ash and magma towards nearby villages.
As authorities attempt to urge people to evacuate, only 40,000 have chosen to leave with many ‘feeling safe’ or staying to protect livestock, Bloomberg reports.
Some governments are advising citizens to defer travel to the island.
Malaysia’s foreign ministry said all but non-urgent travel should be delayed while Australia, a big source of tourists for Bali, said people should be aware that ash clouds could also close other airports in Indonesia depending on weather conditions.
Heavy rain in Bali sent ash and magma (pictured) surging towards nearby villages
Magma has now reached the surface of the volcano, which threatens to produce a ‘strong, explosive eruption,’ authorities warned
Travellers are stranded in Bali as authorities issue a ‘red alert’ warning and Mount Agung continues to erupt. The volcano is pictured on Sunday
Maureen Steele and Jackie Calabretta were scheduled to fly on a Garuda Indonesia flight from Sydney via Bali to Jakarta on Monday for an orangutan tour.
They were up at 4am to travel from Gosford and Wollongong to make the 10am flight which cost $700 return.
‘We were on the plane, all strapped in ready for departure, when the cabin crew announced they needed to wait 10 minutes to get clearance,’ Ms Steele said at Sydney Airport.
‘They told us they didn’t get clearance so we all had to get off again.’
As they passed back through customs, Ms Calabretta contacted Malaysia Airlines and booked a new flight costing $600 one-way to Jakarta via Kuala Lumpur.
‘We have to go – we’ve paid hundreds of dollars on the vaccinations and there have been lots of preparations,’ Ms Steele said as they settled in for a 10-hour wait.
A massive 22 villagers were affected and at least 100,000 people when Bali’s Mount Agung volcano erupted over the weekend
Flight cancellations have forced travellers to sleep at Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport
Some of their frustrations were aired on Facebook, with customers either very pleased they had been moved to temporary accommodation or livid they had been left out
All flights were cancelled at 7am local time and the airport will remain closed until further notice
Customers have spent hours lining up for information about their flights. This traveller is seen at Ngurah Rai International Airport on Saturday
A group of eight surfers are hoping they’ll be able to fly to Bali on Tuesday.
James Hall, 18, said the Sydney friends had been planning their Sumatra surf trip for more than a year.
‘It’s frustrating, we’ve been told we might be able to fly tomorrow, so we just have to wait it out,’ Mr Hall told AAP at Sydney’s international terminal.
‘There’s not much we can do – it’s a volcano.’
The latest data from Agoda shows Bali is the number one destination for Australians travelling in December.
University of Adelaide geologist Mark Tingay says the eruptions from Mount Agung have sent plumes of ash 3000 metres into the air.
‘The volcanic eruption has moved on to the next, more severe, magmatic eruption phase, where highly viscous lava can trap gasses under pressure, potentially leading to an explosion,’ he said in a statement.
Balinese Hindus take part in a ceremony on Sunday, where they pray near Mount Agung in hope of preventing a volcanic eruption
The Mount Agung volcano spews hot volcanic ash as a local chops wood in the foreground
On Saturday Jetstar diverted three flights heading to Bali and cancelled six flights ready to leave the island
Jetstar was forced to cancel numerous flights on Saturday and the following morning but was back on schedule by Sunday evening (stock image)
Mount Agung volcano is seen spewing smoke and ash in Bali on Sunday. The ash has thrown holiday plans into disarray
Tourists watch the Mount Agung volcano erupting as they visit a temple in Karangasem, Indonesia
Mt Agung erupted on Saturday evening and three times on Sunday, throwing holiday plans into disarray.
Indonesia’s Volcano Observatory Notice for Aviation raised its aviation colour code from orange to red, indicating a further eruption with significant emission of volcanic ash into the atmosphere was imminent.
Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology’s Volanic Ash Advisory Centre in Darwin issued maps showing an ash cloud heading southeast over the neighbouring island of Lombok away from Bali’s capital Denpasar, where the international airport is located.
AirAsia and Virgin Australia flights between Denpasar and Australia remained grounded on Sunday night
‘The volcano and movement of ash cloud are highly unpredictable which means we may need to cancel flights at short notice,’ Jetstar warned on its website (stick image)
Passengers wait for their flight schedule at Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport on Sunday