A peaceful hike turns harrowing as these hikers narrowly escape death. A group of hikers decided to hike up the side of an Indonesian volcano, and the results were terrifying. Spine-chilling footage shows these individuals as they race down the mountain in an attempt to escape an erupting volcano.
Hikers Narrowly Escape An Erupting Volcano
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The NY Post reports that a group of hikers in Indonesia decided to "disregard a ban on entering a particularly dangerous zone on the mountainous, sparsely-populated island of Halmahera." Although the Center of Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation advised the general public not to climb or visit Mount Dukono, this group chose to ignore the warnings.
This region has a ban placed on it due to the high volcanic activity present in the area. Indonesia is no stranger to volcanic activity. It has "about 120 active volcanoes", yet these hikers were still not discouraged. The group decided to climb up the mountainside anyway and were rewarded with just what was promised: an active volcano.
Spine-Chilling Video of Escape
While the hikers were able to escape an erupting volcano, it was no easy feat. As the giant cloud of ash grew larger and larger, the hikers were forced to scramble down the side of the volcano. A government drone captured the footage, and it shows just how precarious the situation truly was.
The volcano's ash cloud was over 8,000 feet high. Even as the hikers scurried down the mountain, the cloud rose higher, almost engulfing them. Besides coming deadly close to the volcanic eruption, having to scamper down so quickly leaves plenty of room for injury as well.
Luckily, all of the hikers managed to escape with their lives and without injury. However, they should heed warnings from now on, particularly in an area like Indonesia with high volcanic activity.
