Eleven (11) climbers were on Monday, December 4 found dead in Indonesia after the eruption of an active volcano.

A search and rescue mission was initiated after the eruption of Marapi Volcano in West Sumatra on Sunday, December 3, to find 12 more missing climbers.

Jodi Haryawan, spokesperson for the search and rescue team, said that they found three survivors alongside the three 11 bodies.

The Reuters reports that during the eruption, the 2,891 metre high volcano spewed ash as high as 3km into the sky.

Authorities warned residents from going within 3km of the mountain.

Rescue mission suspended

Unfortunately, a small eruption on Monday forced authorities to suspend the search and rescue mission temporarily over safety concerns.

“It’s too dangerous if we continue searching now. We evacuated 49 climbers from the area earlier Monday and many are being treated for burns, he said,” Haryawan said.

Most-active volcano

Living up to its name, which means Mountain of Fire, The Marapi is the most active volcano in Sumatra island.

This year, it erupted between January and February, spewing ash around 75 metres-1,000 metres from the peak.

Marapi’s deadliest eruption occurred in April 1979, when 60 people died.

Indonesia sits on the ‘The Ring of Fire’.

Also referred to as the Circum-Pacific Belt,’The Ring of Fire’ is a path along the Pacific Ocean characterized by active volcanoes and frequent earthquakes. Its length is approximately 40,000 kilometers (24,900 miles).