Search for three missing hikers suspended as Mount Dukono eruption intensifies in Indonesia

JAKARTA: Indonesian authorities on Friday suspended a search operation for three missing hikers after volcanic activity intensified at Mount Dukono on Halmahera island in North Maluku province, officials said.

“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,” local rescue agency chief Iwan Ramdani told reporters.

Authorities said 17 people were evacuated from the area, including seven Singaporeans and 10 Indonesians. The three missing hikers include two Singaporeans and one Indonesian.

Mount Dukono erupted at 7:41am local time on Friday, sending volcanic ash nearly 10 kilometres into the sky, according to Indonesia’s volcanology agency.

Verified cellphone footage showed hikers rushing down the mountain as thick smoke and ash billowed behind them. In the footage, a tour guide could be heard warning that the volcano was dangerous and prone to major eruptions after periods of calm.

Indonesia’s volcanology agency maintained the volcano’s alert status at the third-highest level. Agency head Lana Saria said volcanic activity had increased sharply since late March after declining last year, with nearly 200 minor eruptions recorded.

Footage released by the agency showed massive clouds of hot ash spreading across the slopes of the volcano.

Local police chief Erlichson Pasaribu told Reuters that survivors reported three people, including two Singaporeans, had died in the eruption. However, rescue authorities have not yet confirmed the deaths.

Pasaribu said climbing at Mount Dukono had been banned since an earlier eruption in 2024.

Authorities warned residents and visitors to avoid activities within a four-kilometre radius of the crater and cautioned about possible volcanic mudflows during rainfall.

No flight disruptions had been reported by Friday evening.

Indonesia lies along the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, a region known for frequent earthquakes and volcanic activity due to tectonic plate movements.