Three people have lost their lives and twenty others are missing after a volcano eruption in Indonesia’s Maluku Islands. The three fatalities were hikers who lost their lives during the disaster. “There are three dead, two foreigners and one resident from Ternate island,” in eastern Indonesia, Erlixon Pasarimbu, police chief of North Halmahera province in the Moluccas Islands, told Kompas TV.
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Meanwhile, twenty hikers remain missing. “According to available information, about twenty people are being searched for,” said Iwan Ramdani, head of search and rescue operations, by phone, clarifying that a smoke cloud reached a height of ten kilometers.
“Our team is on the way. We don’t know yet if there are any injured,” he added.
Ramdani clarified that these twenty people were all hiking, although the area had been closed to visitors since April 17, when scientists had observed increased volcanic activity.
Indonesia volcano eruption: “Ash is heading north”
The eruption, which occurred early this morning, was accompanied by a “roar” and a column of dense smoke that rose about 10 kilometers above the summit of Dukono, a volcano located in North Maluku province, said Lana Saria, head of Indonesia’s National Geological Service.
“The ash is heading north, residential areas and Tombelo city must be on alert for volcanic ash rain,” she emphasized in a statement. Volcanic smoke can be dangerous to public health, Lana Saria added, and can create problems for transportation services.
Massive eruption of Mt. Dukono volcano in North Maluku Province, Indonesia 🇮🇩 (08.05.2026) pic.twitter.com/gdL9HclkqN
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