JAKARTA: Authorities have intensified the search for two climbers believed missing on Mount Semeru in East Java after they entered the volcano illegally despite a closure prompted by wildfires and increased volcanic activity.
Search coordinator S. Jefriyanzah Putra Pratama said 106 rescuers were deployed on Monday (Nov 9) and divided into three teams to cover an area of about 1.6sq km.
"On the third day of the search operation, we are expanding the search area further in the hope of finding the missing climbers as soon as possible," he said, as quoted by state news agency Antara.
Meanwhile, I Made Oka Astawa, head of the Banyuwangi Search and Rescue Agency in East Java, said search teams were using thermal-imaging drones to scan the area from the air, hoping to cover more ground and improve their chances of locating the two climbers.
"We are optimising the search by dividing personnel into several sectors and deploying additional thermal drones. All members of the joint search and rescue team are making every effort to find the two climbers while taking into account terrain conditions and the safety of personnel," Oka said as quoted by Kompas.id. Read also: Joint firefighting team evacuates 162 climbers from Mt. Sumbing
The two missing persons, identified as Beryliyant Kusuma Wiraditama, 19, from Sedati, Sidoarjo, and Mochamad Wahyu Febriansyah, 19, from Rungkut, Surabaya, both in East Java, set out for Mt. Semeru on Nov 2 despite a ban on climbing the mountain, authorities said.
The closure was imposed because of increased volcanic activity, with Semeru remaining at Level III siaga (watch), the second-highest on Indonesia's four-tier volcanic alert system. The national park had also been hit by severe wildfires in late October that killed six firefighters and volunteers involved in efforts to extinguish the blazes.
Authorities said the two climbers had rented a motorcycle in Lumajang before telling friends they were heading to Ranu Regulo, a volcanic lake at the foot of Mt. Semeru, about 21km from the summit. Their last known communication with friends was recorded on the afternoon of Nov. 2.
On Nov 3, a local resident found their rented motorcycle parked at a hut in a privately owned field near a trail leading to Ayek-ayek Hill. The steep, challenging route is not an official hiking trail but is sometimes used by local residents and porters.
The discovery was shared in a local residents' WhatsApp group but was not immediately reported to officials at the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park (TNBTS).
The disappearance came to light on Friday, when TNBTS officials received a report from the motorcycle's rental owner that a vehicle rented by the climbers had not been returned.
Further checks established that the missing rental motorcycle was the same one found at the hut three days earlier, prompting authorities to suspect that two climbers had gone missing after entering the restricted area.
Illegal climbing has remained a concern for Mt. Semeru authorities, with several cases reported in recent months. In mid-June, officials from the TNBTS caught 13 people attempting to climb the mountain without authorisation.
Earlier that month, three other climbers entered the restricted area through the ancient Candi Jawar route in Ampelgading. One of them fell into a ravine and suffered a leg injury, requiring a search and rescue operation for evacuation.
The park authorities later imposed a five-year blacklist on all three climbers, barring them from entering the TNBTS area and other national parks. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
