Terrible Tales of Aussies Stuck in Bali's Ash Cloud Hell: A Wedding in Tatters, a Birthday Ruined and a Dream Family Holiday Which has Turned into a Very Expensive Nightmare
- A cloud of ash has left hundreds of Australians stranded for days in Bali
- Bill Feeny and Philomena Chisholm were forced to cancel their wedding
- Their guests' flights were cancelled due to Denpasar airport being closed
- A Melbourne family bought $6000 flights and still can't get home for a week
- Sydney art student Anastazia Bobis spent her birthday alone in Bali
- After flight delays she was forced to cancel the gathering she had planned
- Jetstar said day time flights would resume after winds improved conditions
11 July 2015, Daily Mail Australia
Ash and smoke and be seen bellowing from Mount Raung as the cloud travels east towards Denpasar
A cancelled wedding, a birthday spent alone in a hotel and $6000 worth of plane tickets - horror stories of Australians left stranded for days have emerged after a plume of ash descended on Bali.
Bill Feeny and Philomena Chisholm were in Bali preparing for their upcoming wedding and awaiting the arrival of their close friends and family from Darwin.
Disaster struck after they were informed of the volcanic ash from Mount Raung in East Java forced Denpasar airport to close and cancelled their guests' flights.
'The fact that our children couldn't make it, that was the most devastating part of it,' Ms Chisholm said.
Bill Feeny and Philomena Chisholm were forced to cancel their Bali wedding day after flights were cancelled
The couple cancelled their wedding plans after realising that their four young children would not be part of the special day if they were to follow through
'Some things are just down to mother nature and can't be helped,' Mr Feeney said.
The pair have rearranged the day for a few months down the track and all of their guests received vouchers from Jetstar to put toward the rescheduled wedding.
Mr Feeny and Ms Chisholm now join thousands of holiday-makers face the agonizing wait to get home.
A Melbourne family also found themselves in a disastrous financial situation after forking out thousands of dollars in a desperate attempt to get their young family home after a nasty bout of food poisoning.
Adam Perry, his wife Sarah and two children Elliot, 5, and Charlotte, 3, has switched all of their mobile devices off as a zero technology pact to each other during their family holiday,
Ms Chisholm and her fiance realised their four children would not be part of their big day
Adam Perry, his wife Sarah and their two young children forked out $6000 on flights to get home
'So I was none the wiser until yesterday afternoon, when I booked my taxi to the airport and then someone turned around and said "are you sure you're going?"' Mr Perry said.
He spent the entire night on the phone to Air Asia to find out if their flight had in fact been cancelled.
Ms Perry was suffering from a bad bout of food poisoning and after a rogue monkey jumped onto their breakfast table, the frightened children were impossible to calm down.
Mr Perry spoke to Jetstar and confirmed flights for $2000, but immediately discovered someone else had gotten the tickets.
He then jumped on tickets that departed Sunday July 19 for $4000.
According to Mr Perry, the family's travel insurance will only cover $1,500 in expenses.
Sydney art student Anastazia Bobis, 23, had her birthday celebrations go to ruin because of the ongoing flight disruptions.
'I'm pretty upset because I was packed and ready to get back for my 23rd birthday celebrations. Instead I had to spend my birthday stuck over here.'
After reading about the flight delays online, Ms Bobis was forced to cancel the gathering she had planned with her friends.
'It was a little scary at first, but I suppose it's not all bad. I'm getting some more quality time by the pool in my resort!'
For now, Ms Bobis is staying in Bali awaiting information on when her flight will be rescheduled.
Anastazia Bobis was forced to cancel her birthday celebrations in Australia after getting stranded in Bali due to flight delays
Others have used social media to lash out at major airlines who have been forced to cancel flights.
Sharonralfs posted to Instagram: 'Thanks Virgin Australia, didn't want to get home anyway #stuckinbali.'
Christ_aff posted an image of the weather report of the ash cloud to show the major area that has been affected and commented: 'This is the reason why 5 airports were being closed
Leigh-Ann and Ross McNulty took their family of four home with AirAsia on Friday after their Jetstar flights were cancelled but were still faced with an extra day in Bali after Denpasar airport was closed until 9.30pm because of the ash.
The family had become desperate to get home as Mrs McNulty had run out of medication and needed to get back to work.
Unable to claim the costs on their travel insurance the family had to resort to borrowing money from their friends.
Perth family, Leigh-Ann (left) and Ross McNulty (centre) and their children are seen after their Jetstar flights were cancelled at Denpasar airport in Bali
An airport staff member reaches out to touch the thick layer of volcanic ash that has built up on a plane grounded in Indonesia
The plume of volcanic ash spewing from Mount Raung is made up of small rocks and glass which can cause significant electrical issues within an aircraft's engine, potentially causing to to shut down completely
Thousands of travellers stranded as Bali flights are cancelled;
Mrs McNulty said: 'My husband's self-employed, we might have to end up declaring bankruptcy now because things have got that bad. This has just financially ruined us really.'
'It's turning out to be the Bali holiday from hell basically,' said Mr Mcnulty.
'We love the Balinese people, but we'll probably never come back as a result of the debacle of the airlines.
Mr Mcnulty continued: 'I realise they've got to put the safety of passengers first, but the actual way they've been so quiet and not let us know is just devastating.'
Other passengers were more relaxed about the situation.
The cloud has travelled 150 kilometers east from Mount Raung and is lingering above Denpasar airport
Angered passengers have tweeted their irritation to the airlines directly after being stuck in Bali for three days and counting
Passengers in Australia flying to Bali (pictured) are also disappointed that flights have been cancelled both ways posting photos on social media to show others what is happening
Sam, from Sydney, said the most frustrating thing was the lack of information.
'It's very difficult to get through to them [the airlines] and I think there should be help desks set up out here,' she said.
'Bali's a nice place to be stuck.'
Virgin Australia told Daily Mail Australia on Saturday evening that all flight operations had been resumed out of Denpasar with further information to be released on Sunday.
'The latest advice from our team of meteorologists, the Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre and the flight crew on our observation flight is that conditions are now suitable to operate into and out of Denpasar Airport,' a statement from Virgin Australia said.
'Virgin Australia plans to operate flights as scheduled tomorrow into and out of Denpasar; however this is subject to the latest advice from the Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre tomorrow morning.'
Families wait in Denpasar airport in Bali after news of further cancellations stop them making their way home
Passengers wait for their postponed flights at Bali's Ngurah Rai International Airport in Bali, Indonesia after the volcanic eruption at Mount Raung
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