KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 14 — A dream trip to see Indonesia’s iconic Komodo dragons took an unexpected turn for three Malaysians when Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki erupted for the second time on November 7, unleashing a towering 10-kilometre ash plume on the day of their arrival.
What was meant to be a four-day adventure in Labuan Bajo soon descended into a week of frustration and uncertainty.
Geetha Kanny, 52, and her friends Hazarina Zakaria, 45, and Gaythri Raman, 46, now find themselves staring at the prospect of a gruelling 36-hour ferry ride to Surabaya just to return home.
The volcano, located on Flores Island in East Nusa Tenggara province — about 500km away from where Geetha and her friends are — first erupted on November 4.
The incident had killed at least nine people and injured 64 others.
The second eruption left hundreds of tourists, including Geetha and her friends, stranded at Labuan Bajo for almost a week now after airports were shut down.
Their flight has been rescheduled to 8.55am today (November 14) and if it gets cancelled again, Geetha and her friends are considering taking a 36-hour ferry ride to Surabaya on Saturday (November 16).
They are scheduled to fly back from Surabaya to Kuala Lumpur on Sunday.
“We are going to the airport on a daily basis only to find our flights getting rescheduled.
“And, there are no e-hailing rides at Labuan Bajo and the airport is not within walking distance from our hotel. So, we have to fork out extra for hotel transport to go to the airport daily.
“We budgeted only for four days, and now we are expecting to be here until November 16. That will exceed our budget by more than 150 per cent,” Geetha told Malay Mail.
Meanwhile, Gaythri said many tour operators are offering alternative travel options to other international airports that are still open.
These routes include a 12-hour ferry, a five-hour bus ride and another 12-hour ferry from Labuan Bajo to Makassar, she said.
“We are just worried that these could be scams. It will be really helpful if the Malaysian embassy can provide us with a list of legitimate alternative travel options,” she said.
Hazarina said the trio could have taken the boat ride to Surabaya on Tuesday but they decided to wait it out since they were optimistic about the flights resuming again.
Their optimism, however, has faded since the volcanic ash has spread as far as Lombok Island in West Nusa Tenggara and flights at two other nearby airports — I Gusti Ngurah Rai in Bali and Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara — have also been cancelled.
The situation has led to those stranded rushing to secure ferry rides to exit the island, Gaythri said.
“Earlier today, we met four other Malaysians, including an elderly couple who are running out of cash.
“Since the ferry owners insist on cash-only payments, some of us are pooling together our cash to help others secure their tickets.
“Thankfully, we were here as a trio. I can’t imagine being stuck in this situation alone,” she said.
Earlier today, the Malaysian embassy in Jakarta said it is working to evacuate 83 Malaysians stranded in Labuan Bajo after the volcanic eruption led to Komodo International Airport’s closure.
Geetha said she and her friends are waiting for instructions from the embassy and local authorities on the matter.
