black mountain with flowing lava at nighttime

Photo by Shawn Appel on Unsplash

Indonesian Volcano Kills Three Hikers Defying Ban

worldMay 13, 2026·339 words·3 min read

On Friday, 8 May 2026, Mount Dukono erupted on Halmahera Island in Indonesia's North Maluku province, killing three hikers who were part of a group climbing the 1,355-metre volcano in defiance of an official ban. Two Singaporeans, Timothy Heng and Shahin Muhrez bin Abdul Hamid, and an Indonesian woman, Angel Krishela Pradita, died after the crater hurled ash more than nine kilometres into the sky and ejected large rocks down the slope. Of the roughly 20 climbers, seventeen were ultimately evacuated, five with injuries.

Police said many hikers wanted to make online videos on the mountain. This made them take big risks. The volcano had erupted more than 200 times since late March. The area near the crater was closed on 17 April. Officials put warning signs at the trail entrance. Reza Selang, the local guide, told the BBC (the British Broadcasting Corporation) he was hired months ago and did not know about the ban. Indonesia is on the Pacific Ring of Fire, where many volcanoes are active.

When the volcano erupted, it threw a rock two metres wide down the mountain. Heng turned back to help Shahin, and the rock killed both men. Authorities have now closed Mount Dukono forever. They started an investigation to see if tour operators did something wrong. They took Reza's drone video as evidence. Rescue teams found the last two bodies on Sunday under deep volcanic ash.

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