MT KELUD ERUPTION AFFECTS INDONESIAN TOURISM

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Feb 14 (Antara) - Mount Kelud's eruption in East Java last Thursday night which claimed at least six lives, forced the evacuation of more than 76 thousand residents and the closure of seven airports, has affected Indonesian tourism.          Seven airports and one airstrip remain closed on Saturday, as of 10 am local time, due to volcanic ash from Mount Kelud in East Java.  Head of Data and Information Center of National Disaster Mitigation Agency Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said in a statement on Saturday that the closed airports were Juanda (Surabaya), Adi Sumarmo (Solo), Adi Sucipto (Yogyakarta) Abdulrahman Saleh (Malang), Ahmad Yani (Semarang), Husein Sastranegara (Bandung) besides the Tunggul Wulung airstrip in Cilacap.          "The runway at Iswahyudi Airport of Madiun also stands closed," Nugroho said.          Director General of Air Transportation of the Ministry of Transportation Herry Bakti meanwhile stated that the seven airports have been temporarily closed because Mount Kelud's eruption had scattered volcanic ash in the area, which drastically reduced the visibility.          The volcanic ash also endangers flights as it can damage the aircraft's jet engines, he noted.          He had also issued a "Notice to Airmen," which also resulted in the temporary closure of the airports.          On Friday, a total of 332 flights from Juanda were cancelled along with 28 from Adisumarmo, 110 from Adisucipto, 76 from Ahmad Yani, 16 from Abdurrahman Saleh, and 24 from Husein Sastranegara.            The director general explained that the status can still change depending on the movement of the volcanic ash.          The closure of the airports has hampered the mobility of tourists in those areas. Major tourist destinations in Java such as the Buddhist Temple of Borobudur and the Prambanan Temple were also closed.          Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Mari Elka Pangestu admitted that the Mount Kelud eruption will affect tourist arrivals to Indonesia.          "The ministry is in a position to explain the sites safe for tourism and others that are not due to the eruption," Mari Elka Pangestu said in West Kalimantan on Friday.          Due to the eruption of Mount Kelud, several tourism sites have been forced to close, such as the Borobudur Temple in Magelang, Central Java and the Prambanan Temple in Yogyakarta.          Head of Borobudur Conservation Office Marsis Sutopo had ordered the shut down as a preservation measure for the Borobudur Temple to keep it safe from the Kelud's volcanic ash.          The volcanic ash from Kelud spewed into the temple area at around 3 a.m. local time.          Mount Kelud in East Java erupted on Thursday night spewing out molten lava and black smoke.          According to Laily Prihatiningtyas, the president of PT Taman Wisata Candi Borobudur, Prambanan, and Ratu Boko (PT TWC), the authority decided to close the temple for any tourism activity, after coordinating with the Borobudur Conservation Office, as the Buddhist temple, built in the eighth century during the Syailendran Dynasty, has been covered by volcanic ash from Mount Kelud.          "Some visitors who were already inside the park were not allowed to climb up to the temple," clarified Prihatiningtyas. As a safety measure, the temple has been kept closed because the volcanic ashes have made the temple floors slippery.          "I was on my way to Borobudur. The ash was quite thick; the visibility range had dipped to around seven meters," Laily Prihatiningtyas stated on Friday.          In the meantime, Corporate Secretary of PT TWC Achmad Muchlis said in Jogyakarta that the temple tourism which his company was running was closed for the time being because the three tourist destinations were affected by volcanic ashes from Mount Kelud.          He said that the temporary closure of the tourist destinations will last until later notification on the developments and information from the Borobudur Conservation Agency and the Yogyakarta Cultural Preserve Conservation Agency.          "We hereby offer our apologies to the would-be tourists intending to visit Borobudur, Prambanan and the Ratu Boko Palace for the inconvenience caused to them due to the closure of the tourist sites," said Achmad Muchlis.          A spokesman of the company, Indra, said the Borobudur Temple Tourism Park in Magelang District, Central Java, was covered by volcanic dust from Mount Kelud's eruption.          "The Borobudur Temple Conservation Agency has now put covers on a number of stupas to protect these from the fallout of the Mount¿s eruption. We predict that the covers will stay for seven days," Indra said.          Besides, the Yogyakarta Palace Tourism Object is also temporarily closed to tourists because its condition is still poor as it is covered by the volcanic ash. On Saturday, a number of employees of the Yoyakarta Palace were still cleaning the area around the palace.          "Ash is still flying around, and scattered all over. It is impossible to open it to the tourists as it could endanger their health. We have to clean the ash first," Raden Handoko Pawoko, an employee of the palace, said in Yogyakarta on Saturday.          He said the ash's layer in the yards inside and outside the palace complex was still about one centimeter thick and it was impossible for anyone to open the facility to the public. "All the gates opening into the palace are still closed. We still are not in a position to receive the tourists," Handoko Pawoko said.          "We are still waiting for a decision from the Palace family before reopening it," Handoko Pawoko remarked.          According to Pawoko, about 2,000 to 4,000 local and foreign tourists visit the palace every day. "There are tourists who have just come in, both, individually and in groups, but they were turned back because we cannot receive them as yet," he added.          Currently, many disasters are taking place across the country.          Therefore, the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy is monitoring developments related to natural disasters at home to ascertain areas safe for tourists.          The ministry, according to Minister Mari Elka Pangestu, is monitoring the updated data from the National Disasters Mitigation Agency (BNPB) related to safe and unsafe areas.          She added that unlike the eruption of Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra Province, not all areas fell in the dangerous category. "For example, Medan, although located in the same province, is far away from Mount Sinabung. So, it is safe to visit Medan," she elaborated.***2*** (T.A014/H-YH) INE/Edited by INE (T.A014/A/BESSR/A/Yosep) 15-02-2014 17:42: