Indonesian city masks up as Anak Krakatoa volcanic ash blankets streets

More than 150,000 passengers were left stranded on Sunday as Indonesia shuttered its main international airport and seven others, cancelling hundreds of flights after Mount Anak Krakatoa spewed a plume of volcanic ash and lava from more than 150 kilometres away.

Mount Anak Krakatoa erupted on Saturday, with the record of two new eruptions on Sunday, the volcanology agency warned. Several airports in cities including Semarang and Surabaya have been prepared as "alternatives for landing," Transportation Minister Dudy Purwagandhi said. Anak Krakatoa, which means Child of Krakatoa, sits in a strait that separates the islands of Java and Sumatra.

Ships passing through the strait were asked to increase vigilance for possible disruption to navigation safety and vessels are prohibited from approaching an exclusion zone of three kilometres radius from the volcano, local port authorities said in a statement.