The cyclone, which is on a path toward eastern Indonesia, was being monitored on the possibility that it could reach the country yesterday.

"Cyclone Glenda was created mainly by the strength of the pressure centre in the Australian waters to the southwest [of Bali]," Sutrisno, head of the agency, said in Denpasar.

Sutrisno made the statement in response to the weather situation in Bali, where it has been pouring with rain for the last three days.

He said that a wind speed of 30 knots toward Bali had greatly affected weather on the resort island. The agency's data showed the wind blew across East Java, Bali and West and East Nusa Tenggara.

"Due to the cyclone, rain is falling in the four provinces and is accompanied by stormy winds," Sutrisno said.

A similar warning was made by coast guard Made Suarta, especially to tourists intending to swim at Legian Beach.

"The weather has been a bit rough over the last few days, and we worry that big waves will sweep many swimmers out to sea," Made said.

On Wednesday, three locals were swept away by high tides at Legian Beach. Only two could be saved.

Prior to the incident, Suarta and his colleagues had warned visitors to be on the alert due to the uncompromising weather condition.

"Many swimmers just disregarded the warning, so unexpected things happened," he said.

In Yogyakarta, two passenger planes, operated by Mandala and national carrier Garuda Indonesia, failed to land on Saturday at Adisucipto airport due to incessant rain and strong winds since Friday.

"The planes were unable to land due to the strong winds present," Second Lieutenant Suparman of the meteorology section of Adisucipto airport said.

Moreover, the vision of the pilots was also disrupted by the thick cloud cover in the area, he added.

In Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, a Cassa 212 plane flying local routes in the province was forced to return to El Tari airport due to thick clouds.

The Jakarta Post,

Asia News Network

JAKARTA