(SeaPRwire) – Three individuals died and five more sustained injuries on Friday following an eruption of Mount Dukono on a remote Indonesian island, where the hikers had entered a prohibited zone, officials stated.
Approximately 20 trekkers began their ascent of the nearly 1,355-meter (4,445-foot) volcano in Halmahera on Thursday, disregarding safety prohibitions, according to North Halmahera police chief Erlichson Pasaribu.
“They knew the climb was banned because the mountain is a restricted area under high alert, but they persisted,” Pasaribu said.
In spite of social media cautions and on-site signage, “many are still eager to climb, motivated by the goal of producing content for the internet,” Pasaribu added.
Pasaribu confirmed that three people, comprising one local and two Singaporeans, lost their lives in the eruption. The Indonesian fatality was from Ternate, located in the same province as Mount Dukono.
The bodies of the three victims are still on the volcano, as continuing eruptions and challenging landscape have hindered rescue teams from retrieving them, Pasaribu explained.
The party was trapped when the volcano erupted at 7:41 a.m. local time, propelling an ash plume more than six miles into the air.
Rescue units were dispatched after an emergency signal was received from the mountain region.
By Friday afternoon, 17 climbers had been successfully rescued, National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari reported. This group included seven Singaporeans and two Indonesians who assisted in the rescue effort and gave details about the victims’ climbing paths prior to the eruption.
Five of the rescued individuals were noted to have injuries.
Pasaribu stated that police intend to interrogate those who accompanied the hikers up the mountain. Digital has contacted the Indonesian National Police for further comment.
The Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Program notes that Mount Dukono has been in a state of continuous eruption since 1933.
“Friday’s eruption ranks as one of the most powerful in this timeframe,” said Lana Saria, head of the Geology Agency at Indonesia’s Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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