- Sculptor Lalanne's animal creations sell for $59 mn
- From Tesla to Trump: Behind Musk's giant leap into politics
- US, European markets rise as investors weigh rates, earnings
- In Colombia, children trade plastic waste for school supplies
- Supercharged hurricanes trigger 'perfect storm' for disinformation
- JPMorgan Chase profits top estimates, bank sees 'resilient' US economy
- Djokovic proves staying power as he progresses to Shanghai semi-finals
- Sheffield Utd boss Wilder 'numb' after Baldock death
- Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit
- Fans immerse themselves in Marina Abramovic's first China exhibition
- Israel says conducting review after UN peacekeepers wounded in Lebanon
- 'Party atmosphere': Skygazers treated to another aurora show
- Djokovic 'overwhelmed' after 'greatest rival' Nadal's retirement
- Zelensky in Berlin says hopes war with Russia will end next year
- Kyrgyzstan opens rare probe into glacier destruction
- European Mediterranean states discuss Middle East, migration
- Djokovic proves staying power as progresses to Shanghai semi-finals
- Hurricane Milton leaves at least 16 dead as Florida cleans up
- Britain face 'ultimate challenge' in America's Cup duel with New Zealand
- Lebanon calls for 'immediate' ceasefire in Israel-Hezbollah war
- Nihon Hidankyo: Japan's A-bomb survivors awarded Nobel
- Thunberg leads pro-Palestinian, climate protest in Milan
- Boat captain rescued clinging to cooler in Gulf of Mexico after storm Milton
- Tears, warnings after Japan atomic survivors group win Nobel
- 'Unspeakable horror': the attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
- Stock markets diverge before China weekend briefing
- Christian villagers 'trapped' in south Lebanon crossfire
- Sabalenka sets up Gauff showdown in Wuhan semis
- EU questions shopping app Temu over illegal products risk
- Kim Sei-young holds lead with late birdies at LPGA Shanghai
- Toulouse welcome Dupont 'boost' as Olympic star returns to Top 14
- Japanese atomic bomb survivor group Nihon Hidankyo wins Nobel Peace Prize
- Deadly Israeli strike on Beirut likely targeted Hezbollah security chief
- Bangladesh Islamist chief backs crimes against humanity trial for ex-PM
- Everest climber's remains believed found after 100 years
- 20 Pakistan coal miners shot dead in attack
- Clashes on South China Sea, Ukraine dominate Asia summit
- Han Kang's books sell out in South Korea after Nobel win
- Zelensky meets Pope, Scholz as whirlwind Europe tour ends
- Hello Hallyu: why is South Korean culture sweeping the globe?
- UK economy rebounds in August in boost to new govt
- Voice of Japan's beloved robot cat 'Doraemon' dies
- Shanghai markets sink ahead of briefing on mixed day for Asia
- Investors, analysts eye bigger China stimulus at Saturday briefing
- 20 Pakistan coal miners shot dead in attack: police
- Blinken condemns China's 'increasingly dangerous' sea moves
- Toyota returns to Formula One as Haas partner
- EU chief says China must 'adapt its behaviour' to solve trade row
- Musk unveils robotaxi, pledges it 'before 2027'
- Lynx rally, stun Liberty in overtime in WNBA Finals opener
CMSC | 0.24% | 24.65 | $ | |
SCS | 2.21% | 12.885 | $ | |
NGG | 0.71% | 66.15 | $ | |
RIO | 0.18% | 66.96 | $ | |
RYCEF | 0.58% | 6.92 | $ | |
CMSD | 0.51% | 24.898 | $ | |
GSK | -1.25% | 38.725 | $ | |
BCE | -0.2% | 32.795 | $ | |
BCC | 1.84% | 141.56 | $ | |
BTI | -0.17% | 35.05 | $ | |
VOD | -1.09% | 9.635 | $ | |
JRI | 0.11% | 13.235 | $ | |
RBGPF | -1.03% | 59.49 | $ | |
AZN | 0.3% | 77.105 | $ | |
RELX | 1.04% | 46.845 | $ | |
BP | -0.72% | 32.11 | $ |
11 hikers dead after Indonesia volcano erupts, dozen still missing
Eleven hikers were found dead Monday and another 12 were missing after a volcano erupted in Indonesia, with rescuers racing to carry injured and burned survivors down the mountain on foot.
Rescuers worked through the night to find dozens of hikers stranded on Mount Marapi on the island of Sumatra after it spewed an ash tower 3,000 metres (9,340 feet) -- taller than the volcano itself -- into the sky on Sunday.
The dead hikers were found near Marapi's crater after the 2,891-metre volcano rained ash on nearby villages, according to a local rescue official.
Twelve were missing, three more were found alive and 49 had safely descended from the crater, some with burns and fractures, the official said.
"They are being carried down manually, rescuers are taking turns bringing them down. We can't do an air search with a helicopter because the eruption is ongoing," said local rescue agency chief Abdul Malik, who added about 120 rescuers were involved in the search.
The three other people who had been found alive were yet to be taken down the mountain, along with the 11 dead.
Those three survivors were found near the crater and "their condition was weak, and some had burns," Malik said.
A clip shared with AFP showed a rescue worker with a flashlight strapped to his head piggybacking a hiker, who moans in pain and says "God is greatest" as she is led to safety in the darkness of night.
Zhafirah Zahrim Febrina, one of the rescued hikers, is shown in a video message from the volcano desperately appealing to her mother for help.
The 19-year-old student appeared shocked, her face burnt and her hair matted with thick grey ash.
"Mom, help Ife. This is Ife's situation right now," she said, referring to her nickname.
She is now in a nearby hospital with her father and uncle after being trapped on the mountain on a hiking trip with 18 school friends.
"She is going through a tremendous trauma," said her mother Rani Radelani, 39.
"She is affected psychologically because she saw her burns, and she also had to endure the pain all night."
- 'Tremendous trauma' -
Local rescue agency spokesperson Jodi Haryawan said the rescue efforts had been broken up by sporadic eruptions but the search was still going despite the risks.
"Once it was safer they continued the search. So the search was not halted," he told AFP.
Rudy Rinaldi, head of the West Sumatra Disaster Mitigation Agency, told AFP some of the rescued hikers had suffered burns.
"Those who are injured were the ones who got closer to the crater," he said.
At least eight people suffered burns, one had burns and a fracture and another had a head wound, according to a list of those found from Basarnas, a national search and rescue agency, seen by AFP.
Ahmad Rifandi, an official at the Mount Marapi monitoring station, told AFP that ash rain was observed after the eruption and had reached Bukittinggi, the third-largest city in West Sumatra that has a population of more than 100,000.
The plume of smoke and ash blocked out the sun after the eruption and coated nearby cars, scooters and ambulances.
Marapi is on the second alert level of Indonesia's four-step system and authorities have imposed a three-kilometre exclusion zone around its crater.
The Indonesian archipelago sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity.
The Southeast Asian country has nearly 130 active volcanoes.
As the search goes on for the missing 12 hikers, Febrina's family was relieved she was one of the lucky ones.
Good news arrived in the form of a livestream on video app TikTok by a member of the rescue services, in which Radelani saw her visibly shaken daughter.
"It felt incredible, praise God she has been found," Radelani said.
"If she asks me to allow her to climb a mountain, I'll say no."
A.Malone--AMWN