Indonesia resumes search for victims of Mount Dukono eruption

Rescue teams in Indonesia resumed operations on Saturday to recover the bodies of hikers killed in a volcanic eruption at Mount Dukono, officials said, News.Az reports, citing AFP.

The eruption occurred Friday morning on Halmahera Island, sending an ash plume about 10 kilometers into the sky.

Authorities said no nearby towns or villages were in immediate danger due to the remote location of the volcano.

Local police chief Erlichson Pasaribu said two Singaporean hikers and one Indonesian hiker were killed, though the search and rescue agency still officially lists them as missing. Seventeen other climbers, including additional Singaporean nationals, were safely evacuated.

Search operations were initially suspended late Friday due to ongoing volcanic activity, according to search and rescue official Iwan Ramdani. The mission resumed Saturday with more than 100 rescuers, including police and military personnel, supported by drone surveillance despite continued hazardous conditions.

Ramdani said rescuers are working carefully, adding that teams will approach the crater only when conditions are safe and will withdraw immediately if eruptions intensify.

The volcano erupted multiple times on Saturday, including one ash column reaching about three kilometers high, according to Indonesia’s Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG).

Disaster mitigation officials said preliminary assessments suggest the bodies of the two Singaporean hikers are located approximately 20 to 30 meters from the crater rim, while the location of the third victim remains unknown.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore said it is working with its embassy in Jakarta to assist affected citizens and families.

Mount Dukono is one of Indonesia’s most active volcanoes and has remained at alert level two on the country’s four-tier system since 2008. Authorities established a four-kilometer exclusion zone around the crater in December 2024.

Officials said the hikers reportedly ignored warning signs and social media alerts advising against entering the restricted area.

Indonesia sits on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” a region known for frequent seismic and volcanic activity, and is home to nearly 130 active volcanoes.

News.Az 

By Nijat Babayev