An international airport on Indonesia’s Java Island was forced to close temporarily Tuesday after a volcano erupted in the morning and spewed volcanic ash almost 11 kilometres into the sky, local authorities said.
Mt Merapi’s eruption at 7.10am forced the closure of Adi Sumarmo International Airport in Solo, Central Java Province, from 9.25am, according to Indonesia’s air navigation operator.
The Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation has not raised the volcano’s alert status from level 2 on its four-stage scale.
There have been no reports of casualties or damage, according to National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Agus Wibowo.
The last major eruption of Mt Merapi, which dominates the landscape immediately north of Yogyakarta, occurred in 2010, killing at least 113 people and injuring about 1,800 others.
