Enjoying a Bali holiday while thousands are being evacuated

I’m very much enjoying my Bali vacation and I  leave Tuesday. We hope Den Pasar airport remains open.

These are the words of eTN Associate Mel Webster who is currently on a personal holiday on the Islands of the God in Bali, Indonesia.

She continues to say: “Thousands are being evacuated from villages near Mt Agung. Lots of animals/cattle left behind.”Mt. Agung could erupt today, next week, next month that is what local press are reporting from the emergency center.”

Mount Agung or Gunung Agung is a volcano in Bali, Indonesia. This stratovolcano is the highest point on the island. It dominates the surrounding area, influencing the climate.

Australia has issued a new travel advisory for Bali as experts warn the island’s enormous volcano, Mt Agung, could erupt soon.

Hundreds of tremors each day are shaking the volcano, and the region’s leading vulcanologist has said the probability of an eruption is increasing by the day.

Tourists should be ready to change their plans if the volcano erupts.

The most likely initial impact of a big eruption is the closure of the island’s airport. Tourists to Bali should reconfirm their trips with their airlines and tour operators.

On Monday, the government expanded an existing “exclusion zone” around the crater to anywhere from 6 kilometers to 7.5 kilometers depending on which side of the mountain you’re on. Residents are on standby to evacuate.

If you live in Indonesia, you live with the possibility of potentially dangerous volcanic activity. Situated on the Pacific Ring of Fire, the country is a literal hotspot for natural disasters like earthquakes, tsunamis, and, yes, eruptions.

So while everyone is very much hoping Mt. Agung goes back to sleep it’s good to be prepared. For example, Virgin Airlines now stops in Darwin to get extra fuel, so they can return a plane to Australia in case Mt. Agung erupts.