Indonesia airport closures
July 16, 2015
Mount Raung (photo) on the main island of Java sent ash and debris 2,000 meters (6,560 feet) into the air. The ash traveled through the air near the cities of Surabaya and Malang.
Juanda International and Abdurrahman Saleh airports were closed on Thursday and only opened again in the evening.
Transport Ministry spokesman Julius Adravida Barata said Surabaya's Juanda airport was not due to re-open until 7.20 pm (1220 UTC) and Malang's Abdul Rachman Saleh airport was to stay closed until 8.30 pm (1330 UTC).
The ministry said Sultan Babullah airport in Ternate was closed after Mount Gamalama in eastern Indonesia sent volcanic ash as high as 1,500 meters into the sky.
The shutdowns came as millions of Muslims in Indonesia tried to get home to celebrate Eid next Sunday, at the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan. With 202.9 million people identifying themselves as Muslim, Indonesia has a larger Islamist population than any other country in the world. The figure represents 87 percent of the total population.
Last week the airport on the tourist island of Bali was closed because of an eruption by Mount Raung. Four other airports in the region were also closed, leaving thousands of tourists stranded.
Two domestic airports in the East Java towns of Banyuwangi and Jember have stayed closed since then.
jm/jil (AP, dpa)