13 Dead, 10 Missing On Indonesia Volcano after Deadly Eruption
Rescuers have found two more bodies on an Indonesia volcano that erupted over the weekend, bringing the death toll to 13.
The search for 10 other hikers on Mount Marapi resumed on Tuesday after being paused due to safety worries.
Marapi was still erupting as hundreds of rescuers scaled slippery terrain in search of the missing.
The volcano spewed a 3km (9,800ft) ash cloud into the air on Sunday, shrouding surrounding villages in ash.
There were 75 hikers in the area during the eruption, most of whom have been evacuated and received treatment for burns.
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Mount Marapi, which means “mountain of fire”, is among the most active of Indonesia’s 127 volcanoes and is also popular among hikers.
Marapi’s deadliest eruption occurred in 1979 when 60 people died.
Ahmad Rifandi, an official at Marapi’s monitoring station, told AFP that he observed five eruptions from midnight until 08:00 local time (01:00 GMT) on Tuesday.
“Marapi is still very much active. We can’t see the height of the column because it’s covered by the cloud,” he told the news agency.
Video footage of Sunday’s eruption showed a huge cloud of volcanic ash spread widely across the sky, and cars and roads covered with ash.
On Monday, rescuers took turns carrying the dead and the injured down the mountain’s arduous terrain and onto waiting ambulances with blaring sirens.
“Some suffered from burns because it was very hot, and they have been taken to the hospital,” West Sumatra Disaster Mitigation Agency head Rudy Rinaldi said.
