Five Journalists Still Missing, Families Hope SAR Operation Will Be Extended

The search for five journalists and three crew members lost around Mount Anak Krakatau (GAK) entered its seventh day today, Monday (14/9).

Families are hoping that the search can be extended by the joint SAR team. “From our discussion earlier, the families have high hopes that if they are not found by the seventh day, this humanitarian search and rescue operation can be extended,” said Banten Governor Andra Soni on Sunday (13/9).

Families also expressed hope that the joint SAR team could continue to explore the land surrounding Mount Anak Krakatau. “The hope is that Sebesi Island can be re-scanned, and God willing, it can be done,” he explained.

An extension of the search period is expected to maximise efforts across both the islands and the waters in the coming days. “As the Governor of Banten, I also hope that Basarnas, as the leader of this operation, can consider these hopes,” he clarified.

Five journalists were reported to have lost contact while in the waters of the Sunda Strait, Pandeglang Regency, Boven. They had previously departed via speedboat to cover the eruptive activity of Mount Anak Krakatau.

This information was reported by the Banten Search and Rescue Office on Tuesday (8/9). The speedboat carrying the journalists was known to have departed from Pagedongan Pier, Carita, on Monday (7/9) at 14:00 WIB.

The last communication with the group occurred around 15:04 WIB. Previously, one of the journalists was reported to have sent their last known location at 14:42 WIB. As of Tuesday afternoon, the journalists had not been found. The SAR team from Banten subsequently moved to conduct searches at the suspected last location of the group.

The five identified journalists are M Bagus Khoirunnas from Antara, Ari Basuki from Merdeka, Yudhis from iNews, Daus from Anadolu, and Donal, who is a freelance journalist. Basarnas stated that several other victims are still in the process of being identified.