JAKARTA, May 10 — The search for two missing Singaporean hikers after a volcanic eruption of Mount Dukono was still hampered by continuous eruptions and bad weather today, amid fears that the two are dead.
The local rescue agency's head Iwan Ramdani said that some 150 personnel with two thermal drones have been deployed since this morning, with the focus of the search around 100 to 150 metres of the crater rim.
"However, Mount Dukono continues to erupt, and rain is also falling in the area. We carry out rescue efforts during intervals when there are no eruptions," he told Reuters.
Mount Dukono, located in North Maluku province bordering the Pacific Ocean, began erupting on Friday (May 8), spewing ash as high as 10km. It has continued to erupt at a lower scale ever since.
Iwan added that the area around the crater was still blanketed in volcanic ash, with the search covering an area of around 1.25km from the last known location of the victims.
Rescuers have found backpacks suspected of belonging to the two Singaporeans. Police chief Erlichson Pasaribu said that survivors told police they were dead.
Yesterday, the authorities confirmed that one Indonesian hiker who had previously gone missing was dead.
Seventeen people, including seven Singaporeans and 10 Indonesians, survived the incident. Singapore's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that its citizens will travel home today.
Indonesia's volcanology agency reported at least three eruptions as of this morning, with the highest spewing 1.3km of volcanic ash.
It is still maintaining the third-highest alert level for Mount Dukono and bans any activities within 4km of the crater.
