A deadly eruption at Mount Dukono on Halmahera Island, North Maluku, claimed three lives, including two Singaporean hikers whose bodies were found embracing under volcanic rocks.
The National Disaster Management Agency (Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Bencana or BNPB) confirmed that all missing victims of the eruption of Mount Dukono, which took place on Friday, the 8th of May, have now been found. The SAR team initially discovered one victim, an Indonesian citizen with the initials E, who was found deceased.
“Previously, the joint SAR team found one victim with the initials E [whose gender was female], an Indonesian citizen, who was deceased. With the discovery of the other two victims, all victims previously declared missing have been found,” said Abdul Muhari, the Head of BNPB’s Disaster Data, Information, and Communication Centre, on Sunday, the 10th of May.
The two most recently discovered victims were Singaporean citizens with the initials HWQT (male, 30) and SMBAH (male, 27). The search for the two bodies was hampered by the considerable thickness and depth of volcanic material.
The Head of the Ternate Search and Rescue Office, Iwan Ramdani, stated that the two Singaporean victims were found approximately 13 metres north of the location, where the emergency signal was first received by the National Search and Rescue Agency’s Command Centre. He explained that both victims were found in the same location, with their bodies severely damaged after being crushed by large rocks during the eruption.
“The victims were found hugging each other and crushed by large rocks,” Ramdani described.
In addition to the three fatalities, 15 others were found safe. The survivors from Singapore were TYME (male, 30), OSS (female, 37), PL (female, 33), LHEI (female, 31), TJYG (female, 30), LYXV (female, 30), and LSD (male, 29).
Meanwhile, the Indonesian survivors included BB (male, 24), YL (male, 23), S (male, 26), A (male, 22), H (male, 26), FN (female, 27), RI (female, 29), and SJ (male, 48).
After recovering the victims, the joint search-and-rescue team immediately evacuated and transported all bodies to the Mount Dukono eruption emergency response post. The victims were then taken to Tobelo Regional Hospital for identification and further handling.
“With the discovery of all victims, the Mount Dukono eruption SAR operation is officially declared closed,” concluded Muhari.
Mount Dukono on Halmahera Island, North Maluku, is known as one of the most active volcanoes in Indonesia, due to its almost continuous emission of smoke and volcanic ash. On the following Monday morning (the 11th of May), Mount Dukono erupted twice, with ash columns reaching 2,700 metres high. It has been reported that Mount Dukono has erupted more than 200 times since March 2025.