An eruption at Mount Agung in Bali shut down three airports on Friday, June 29, affecting tens of thousands of travelers.

Volcanic ash forced Ngurah Rai International Airport in to close from 3 am local time on June 29. It reopened at 2:30 pm, four and half hours earlier than scheduled.

Meanwhile in East Java, Banyuwangi Airport (formerly known as Blimbing Sari Airport) in Banyuwangi and Noto Hadinegoro Airport in Jember were also also closed, according to Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, a spokesman for the National Disaster Management Agency.

The closure of Ngurah Rai Airport, a major tourist hub, was likely to affect nearly 75,000 passengers, with the cancellation of nearly 450 flights, Sutopo said.

The volcano’s eruption this week, which began on Wednesday, June 27, emitted plumes of volcanic ash reaching as high as 2,000 metres above the crater.

This video of the eruption was shared online on June 28.

The volcano previously erupted about two weeks ago, on June 13. Mount Agung erupted five times in late November 2017, forcing tens of thousands of people to evacuate and disrupting air travel. Credit: Bali Mobile Police Brigade via Storyful