23 dead in Indonesia’s Mount Marapi volcanic eruption as more climbers’ bodies found

More bodies were uncovered by rescuers carrying out search operations on the lava-covered slopes of Indonesia’s Mount Marapi volcano, taking the death toll to 23.

Over 50 climbers were saved after the initial eruption that occurred on Sunday, when 11 others were initially confirmed dead. A second eruption on Monday spewed a new burst of hot ash and lava as high as 800 metres (2,620 feet) into the air and temporarily halted rescue operations.

The latest bodies were found not too far from the eruption site, estimated to be only a few metres away, said Edi Mardianto, the deputy police chief in West Sumatra province. The bodies of five climbers have been recovered, and 18 are presumed dead because they were so close to the eruption of hot gases and ash.

Marapi has stayed at the third-highest of four alert levels since 2011, a level indicating above-normal volcanic activity, prohibiting climbers and villagers within 3 km (1.8 miles) of the peak, according to Indonesia’s Centre for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation.

Climbers were only allowed below the danger zone, and they had to register at two command posts or online. However, local officials acknowledged many people may have climbed higher than permitted and residents also could have been in the area, making the number of people stranded by the eruption impossible to confirm.

In the initial eruption, Mount Marapi spewed thick columns of ash as high as 3km (9,800 feet) in Sunday’s outburst when hot ash clouds spread for several kilometres in the area.

“The rest we want to evacuate are 18 in number and we expect they are no longer alive. The team will evacuate and take them to the hospital tomorrow or today to be identified,” Mardianto said on Tuesday.

Rescuers are also battling bad weather and terrain constraints, as the wind sweeps   heat from the molten debris towards the rescue workers.

A video released by West Sumatra’s Search and Rescue Agency showed rescuers evacuating an injured climber on a stretcher off the mountain and into a waiting ambulance to be taken to hospital.

Nearby villages and towns were blanketed by tons of volcanic debris that blocked sunlight, and authorities recommending people wear masks and eyeglasses if possible to protect themselves from the ash.

Over 1,400 people live on Marapi’s slopes in Rubai and Gobah Cumantiang, the nearest villages about 5 km to 6 km (3.1 miles to 3.7 miles) from the peak.

Marapi is well known for having sudden eruptions that are difficult to detect because the source is shallow and near the peak, and its eruptions are not caused by deep movement of magma, which sets off tremors that register on seismic monitors.

The Indonesian volcano has been active since a January eruption that caused no casualties. It is among more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia, which is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.