Mount Dukono Eruption Kills Three Hikers in Restricted Indonesian Zone

Three people died and five others suffered injuries Friday when Mount Dukono erupted on a remote Indonesian island. The hikers had entered a restricted area, authorities said.

North Halmahera police chief Erlichson Pasaribu said about 20 climbers started up the nearly 1,355-meter (4,445-foot) volcano in Halmahera on Thursday despite safety restrictions.

"They were aware that climbing was prohibited as the mountain is a restricted zone due to its high alert status, but insisted on going ahead," Pasaribu said.

He added that despite warnings on social media and signs at the site, "many people remain determined to climb, driven by the desire to create online content."

Pasaribu identified the dead as one local resident from Ternate in the same province and two Singaporeans. The three bodies remain on the volcano. Ongoing eruptions and difficult terrain have blocked rescue teams from evacuating them.

The group got stranded when the volcano erupted at 7:41 a.m. local time Friday. It sent a column of ash more than six miles into the sky.

Rescue teams moved in after an emergency signal came from the mountain area. By Friday afternoon, they had safely evacuated 17 climbers. That group included seven Singaporean nationals and two Indonesians who joined the rescue and shared details on the victims' climbing routes before the eruption, said National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari.

Five of those evacuated had injuries.

Pasaribu said police plan to question those who joined the hikers on the mountain. Police will also consider fines for reckless tourists who use emergency services.

Mount Dukono has erupted continuously since 1933, according to the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program.

"Friday’s eruption was among the strongest during this period," said Lana Saria, who heads Indonesia’s Geology Agency at the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry.