Stranded on volcano
Hundreds of hikers seek way down after Indonesian quake
MATARAM, Indonesia — Groups of hikers began to pick their way down the slopes of a Lombok volcano Monday after a deadly earthquake triggered landslides that trapped more than 500 tourists and guides on the mountain.
By late afternoon, more than 250 people had reached a relief post in Sembalun village and a team of rescuers has reached hundreds more near the mountain’s crater lake, a local military official, Arifianto, told Indonesian TV.
Helicopters and search teams on foot had been deployed to scour the slopes of Mount Rinjani, which is crisscrossed with hiking routes popular with tourists, while rescuers have made airdrops of food supplies to those stranded.
Tons of rock and mud were dislodged on the mountain in the magnitude 6.4 quake, which struck early on Sunday and was followed by scores of aftershocks, leaving hikers with no easy way down to safety.
Around 560 people had been estimated to be trapped on Rinjani after the earthquake, including citizens from the United States, France, the Netherlands, Thailand and Germany, as well as many other countries, search and rescue officials said.
But search and rescue officials were unlikely to arrive at its base before nightfall on Monday.
At least 17 people were killed in the earthquake across affected areas of Lombok, while hundreds of buildings were destroyed. More than 150 people were injured, many by collapsing buildings.
The rescue operation is likely to run until at least Tuesday and a military helicopter has dropped supplies at several spots on the mountain, officials said.
“For supplies, they can still survive for another one to two days,” said Agus Hendra Sanjaya, spokesman for Mataram’s search and rescue agency.
Rising 3,726 meters above sea level, the peak is the second-tallest volcano in Indonesia and a favorite among sightseers keen to take in its expansive views.
Hiking trails on the mountain were closed following the quake due to fear of further landslides.
The epicenter of the earthquake was 50 kilometers northeast of Lombok’s main city Mataram, far from the main tourist spots on the south and west of the island. The initial tremor was followed by two strong secondary quakes and more than 100 aftershocks.
President Joko Widodo visited the affected site on Monday and promised financial support for people who had lost their homes.
“We must be aware that our country is in the Ring of Fire, so people need to be prepared to face any disaster,” Widodo said.
Indonesia, one of the most disaster-prone nations on earth, straddles the so-called Pacific “Ring of Fire”, where tectonic plates collide and a large portion of the world’s volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur.
In 2004, a tsunami triggered by a magnitude 9.3 undersea earthquake off the coast of Sumatra in western Indonesia killed 220,000 people in countries around the Indian Ocean, including 168,000 in Indonesia.