FIRE AND BRIMSTONE

At Least 11 Hikers Killed in Indonesia After Volcano Erupts: Officials

Around 75 climbers were on Mount Merapi when it erupted on Sunday, sending toxic ash nearly 10,000 feet into the air.

The bodies of 11 people were found on Indonesia’s Mount Marapi after it erupted in West Sumatra province on Sunday, spewing toxic ash nearly 10,000 feet into the air, according to local authorities. At least 75 people were on the mountain at the time of the eruption, with 26 still stranded and awaiting evacuation a day later, an official with Padang Search and Rescue Agency said, according to Reuters. Of the 49 climbers rescued, at least eight were hospitalized with burn wounds, while one person had suffered a broken limb, the Associated Press reported. The country’s disaster management agency said that the immediate area around Mount Marapi remained on Alert Level II on Monday, and recommended that residents and visitors not carry out any activities within a two-mile radius of its crater. Marapi has been active since it erupted in January, an incident that caused no deaths, according to the AP. It is one of more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia.