TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Ternate Search and Rescue (SAR) Office in North Maluku, Indonesia, has officially ended the search and evacuation operation for the 20 hikers who fell victim to the eruption of Mount Dukono on Friday morning, May 8, 2026. The evacuation operation concluded after the rescue team successfully located and brought down the bodies of two Singaporean hikers on Sunday afternoon, May 10, 2026.
"The search operation is now officially terminated after all deceased victims have been evacuated. The entire rescue team has descended from the incident location," stated the Head of Ternate SAR, Iwan Ramdani, at the Mamuya Village Evacuation Post in Galela, North Halmahera.
According to Iwan, the evacuation operation was initiated immediately on Friday after the SAR Office in Ternate received an SOS signal at the coordinates 142'13.7"N/12752'50.2"E located at the peak of Mount Dukono. The received information indicated that hikers were trapped following the eruption. It was later revealed that there were 20 hikers, consisting of 11 tourists and the rest were guides from Ternate and the local village.
The SAR team then moved and successfully evacuated 17 people, including 7 Singaporean nationals. One Indonesian hiker, who was a casualty, was successfully evacuated on Saturday, prior to the two Singaporeans today. "Previously, the hiker evacuation was slow due to unfavorable weather. There was heavy rain. Mount Dukono was still erupting. The evacuation operation had to be halted several times," Iwan explained.
The Chief of Police of North Halmahera, Commissioner Erlichson Pasaribu, stated that the 20 hikers who fell victim to the Mount Dukono eruption took the Mamuya Village route in the Galela District. This route had been declared closed for hiking activities since April 17, 2026. "Now, the surviving hikers have returned home. We have also informed the public not to hike until the closure status is lifted," Erlichson said.
The Regent of North Halmahera, Piet Hein Babua, expressed his appreciation and gratitude to all parties involved in the evacuation of the hikers. He also urged the public to remain vigilant and avoid activities near the mountain crater, and always follow the instructions from officials and official information from relevant agencies. "We hope this incident will be the last," Piet told Tempo.
Read: Indonesia's Mount Dukono Records Six Eruptions in a Single Day
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