JAKARTA, May 8 – Rescue operations for three hikers trapped by an ongoing volcanic eruption at Mount Dukono in Indonesia have been suspended until Saturday due to continued volcanic activity on Halmahera island, according to local emergency officials.
Iwan Ramdani, who leads the regional rescue agency, explained the decision to reporters Friday: “The search has been temporarily closed today and will resume tomorrow, not because we don’t want to search at night, but because Mount Dukono will continue to erupt.”
Emergency crews successfully evacuated 17 individuals from the area, including seven people from Singapore and 10 Indonesian nationals. The three hikers who remain unaccounted for consist of two Singaporeans and one Indonesian citizen.
The volcanic blast occurred Friday morning at 7:41 a.m. local time in North Maluku province, launching volcanic debris and ash approximately 6 miles high into the atmosphere, according to Indonesia’s volcanic monitoring agency.
Video footage captured by witnesses and confirmed by Reuters documented hikers rushing down the mountainside as massive clouds of smoke and ash billowed behind them. In the recording, a tour guide can be heard speaking in English: “Oh I hope they’re alive. Dukono always dangerous. When it’s really quiet, it means a big eruption is coming.”
Lana Saria, director of the volcanology agency, announced that the mountain’s alert level remains at the third-highest warning status. Agency video showed enormous clouds of superheated ash pouring from the volcanic crater and covering the mountain’s slopes.
While Mount Dukono’s volcanic activity diminished last year, it intensified again in late March with almost 200 smaller eruptions occurring since then.
Local police commander Erlichson Pasaribu reported that survivors indicated three people, including two from Singapore, perished in the eruption, though rescue authorities have not yet verified these fatalities. Pasaribu noted that climbing Mount Dukono has been prohibited since a previous eruption earlier in 2024.
Officials have issued warnings for people to avoid all activities within 2.5 miles of the volcanic crater. The volcanology agency also cautioned about potential volcanic mudflows during rainfall.
No airline schedule disruptions have been reported from the eruption so far. Indonesia is positioned along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” a region known for intense seismic activity where multiple tectonic plates meet.
