Hoping for a miracle on Mount Marapi: Hundreds join hunt for ten missing hikers as killer volcano continues to erupt, hampering search – and death toll hits 13

• The Marapi volcano erupted on Sunday, leaving nearly 75 hikers stranded
• Rescuers are having to climb the volcano on foot to evacuate hikers by stretcher 

Hundreds of Indonesian rescuers are locked in a race against time in a frantic search to find 10 hikers who went missing after a volcano eruption that killed 13 people.

Thirteen hikers were found dead near the crater of Mount Marapi on the island of Sumatra yesterday, with rescue officials announcing 11 deaths the same day and two more on Tuesday. Another 10 are missing, presumed dead.

But others were found alive and carried down the mountain in arduous rescue efforts – fuelling hope for those still unaccounted for.

The volcano spewed an ash tower 3,000 metres (9,800 feet) – taller than the volcano itself – into the sky on Sunday.

But rescue efforts have been further complicated by yet more eruptions and bad weather, with brave rescuers facing the harrowing prospect of having to walk to the volcano’s summit on foot – at great personal risk – to manually evacuate victims on stretchers.

Ahmad Rifandi, head of Marapi’s monitoring post, said it had already observed five new eruptions from midnight to 8am local time (0100 GMT) today.

‘Marapi is still very much active. We can’t see the height of the column because it’s covered by the cloud,’ he said.

Mount Marapi spews volcanic ash from its crater in Agam, West Sumatra, Indonesia, Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023

This handout photo taken on December 4, 2023 and released on December 5, 2023 by the National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS) shows rescuers evacuating one of the victims from the slopes of Mount Marapi in West Sumatra

Rescuers prepare to evacuate a survivor of the Mount Merapi eruption in Agam, West Sumatra, Indonesia, 04 December 2023

Rescuers carry a climber injured in the eruption of Mount Marapi in Agam, West Sumatra, Indonesia, Monday, Dec. 4, 2023

Locals shared fearful messages as ash clouds filled the sky in Indonesia over the weekend

Mount Marapi in Agam district in West Sumatra province spewed thick columns of ash as high as 3,000 meters (9,800 feet) into the sky in a sudden eruption Sunday and hot ash clouds spread several miles

Rescuers transfer the injured in West Sumatra, Indonesia, Dec. 4, 2023

‘The total number of people who have died is currently 13 people. The 10 missing hikers are still being searched,’ Abdul Malik, head of Padang Search and Rescue Agency told AFP, adding the bodies of the two additional dead hikers were found late Monday.

Moment burned volcano survivors plead for help after getting caught in deadly eruption that claimed 11 lives and left 12 others missing 

Five of the dead had been brought down the mountain for identification while eight bodies had been found and were being brought down in bodybags, he said.

The head of Indonesia’s volcanology agency, Hendra Gunawan, said Marapi has been at the second level of a four-tier alert system since 2011, and a three-kilometre exclusion zone had been imposed around its crater.

He appeared to blame hikers on Monday for going too close to the crater, saying the agency recommended no human activities in that zone, and emphasised that ‘severe impacts’ were reported for victims within one to 1.5 kilometres from the crater.

Officials said the hikers had registered through an online booking system, but others may have been on illegal mountain routes, complicating rescue efforts.

Their relatives were still waiting for updates at the information centre at the base of the mountain.

‘I will stay here until I hear some news,’ said Dasman, father of missing hiker Zakir Habibi, who made a two-hour drive from Padang city to the base of the mountain in hope of good news.

‘I still hope my son survives,’ he said on Monday.

A total of 75 hikers were listed by officials as hiking on the mountain since Saturday, with some of the 49 initially accounted for suffering burns and fractures.

The search will carry on for seven days, rescue officials said.

The Marapi volcano erupted on Sunday, leaving nearly 75 hikers stranded. There are 26 people who have not been evacuated, 11 of which were found dead and 12 are still missing

Rescue teams evacuate a victim of the eruption of Mount Marapi. Three people found by rescuers were alive

Rescuers talk to a man affected by Monday’s volcano eruption in Marapi, Indonesia 

‘Some suffered from burns because it was very hot, and they have been taken to the hospital,’ Rudy Rinaldi, head of the West Sumatra Disaster Mitigation Agency said to AFP. 

‘Those who are injured were the ones who got closer to the crater.’

Falling ash blanketed several villages and blocked sunlight, National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari said. 

Authorities distributed masks and urged residents to wear eyeglasses to protect them from volcanic ash, he said.

About 1,400 people live on Marapi’s slopes in Rubai and Gobah Cumantiang, the nearest villages about 3.1 to 3.7 miles from the peak.

Shocking footage showed one lucky survivor caked in ash at the bottom of the volcano.

The woman, named as ‘Zafira’, appeared to be filming herself at the base with thick ash and dirt in her face, on her clothes and in her hair.

‘Mum, help Ife,’ she said, referring to herself by a family nickname. ‘This is Ife’s situation right now.’

The young woman is now in a nearby hospital with her father and uncle after being trapped on the mountain on a hiking trip with 18 school friends.

‘She is going through a tremendous trauma,’ said her mother Rani Radelani, 39.

‘She is affected psychologically because she saw her burns, and she also had to endure the pain all night.’

One lucky survivor was pictured at the base of the volcano following the eruption

The eruption sent ash plumes nearly 10,000 feet into the air and hot ash clouds spread several miles

Marapi has been active since a January eruption that caused no casualties. It is located on the Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’

Authorities distributed masks and urged residents to wear eyeglasses to protect them from volcanic ash

Marapi’s alert level was maintained at the third-highest of four levels, Abdul Muhari said.

He confirmed that authorities had been closely monitoring the volcano after sensors picked up increasing activity in recent weeks.

Marapi has been active since a January eruption that caused no casualties.

It is among more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia, which is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the Pacific ‘Ring of Fire,’ an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

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