Update on Agung, Tuesday 5th December 2017
Airports: both Bali and Lombok: OPEN with flights going
Aviation level: Orange - the second highest
Volcano warning level: IV (4) the highest
SAFE: Bali is safe, except the area in the radius of 8 to 10 km from the summit crater of Agung.
The crater appeared to be filling quite fast. It was projected that if this filling continues at current rates, it would fill in the next 5-10 days, with the potential for lava spilling over the crater and fast-flowing hot avalanches (known as pyroclastic flows), but only if there is a large enough magma supply and the eruption continues. Episodes of tremors continue to occur, indicating the upward movement of magma, and ground monitors showed the inflation of the ground.
Flights from China have been suspended until the threat of volcanic ash clears, according to the People’s Daily. Despite the resumption of flights and Bali’s airport being open since last Wednesday, China Southern and China Eastern have withdrawn flights awaiting clearance from the Civil Aviation Administration of China.
It might surprise you to learn that the biggest tourists to Bali no longer come from Australia. Tourists from China are now the largest percentage, totalling over a million, and those from China/Hong Kong and Taiwan now make up nearly a quarter of arrivals.