Overview
- The volcano, which erupted Friday morning, blasted ash about 10 kilometers high and trapped roughly 20 hikers on Halmahera island.
- By Sunday, authorities said two Singaporean hikers were still missing and feared dead as 150 personnel used thermal drones to search near the crater during lulls in fresh blasts and rain.
- Rescuers on Saturday recovered the body of an Indonesian woman identified as Enjel and earlier evacuated 17 people from the slopes in a stop‑start operation.
- Officials say the group entered a no‑go zone within 4 kilometers of the Malupang Warirang crater despite posted warnings and an ongoing ban, and police are questioning guides over possible negligence.
- Monitors report a sharp uptick in activity since late March with nearly 200 small eruptions, an elevated alert level, and warnings about ashfall and volcanic mudflows in a country that sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire.