Seven Indonesian airports remain shut due to volcanic ash

Seven Indonesian airports, including two serving Jakarta, remained closed on Monday morning because of volcanic ‌ash from eruptions at Mount Anak Krakatau, Reuters reported, citing the transport minister.

Ash from Anak Krakatau, which sits halfway between Java and Sumatra islands, has blanketed Jakarta and several surrounding areas since it erupted late on Friday, leading to the closure of the airports for safety reasons.

At night, the lava from Anak Krakatau lit ​the sky red as it erupted.

Anak Krakatau is one of about 130 active volcanoes in Indonesia, which ⁠straddles the "Pacific Ring of Fire", a highly seismically active zone where different plates on the earth's crust meet to create a large number ​of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

Anak Krakatau, which means child of Krakatau, began emerging a century ago from the area previously occupied by Krakatau, ​then known as Krakatoa. The older volcano destroyed itself in mass eruptions in 1883, which killed more than 36,000 people after triggering a series of tsunamis.

A tsunami after an eruption at Anak Krakatau in 2018 killed over 400 people.

The transport ministry said on Monday more than 270,000 people have ​been affected by the delay, diversion, or cancellation of 2,300 flights.

Jakarta's main airport will remain closed until 6 p.m. local time (1100 GMT), the ministry ​said, along with six other airports. One other airport in South Sumatra has been reopened.