Mysterious Object Captured by Drone Near Anak Krakatau: A Clue to the Missing Journalists?

Jakarta, VIVA – Hopes of locating the eight individuals who lost contact during a journey towards Mount Anak Krakatau emerged following the circulation of drone footage on social media.

In a video uploaded by the Instagram account @andrearamadhaan, a long white object can be seen floating on the sea surface. The object appears to be in an inverted position and is reported to be in the vicinity of Mount Anak Serakatau.

The footage was captured on Sunday, 13 September 2026. The account owner claimed to have only noticed the object’s presence after re-examining his drone recordings.

“I am also moved by this. Because, if I had realised it at the time, I might have approached it. Here, I am only trying to contribute positively,” said the man in the account, as quoted on Wednesday, 16 September 2026.

Information from social media was subsequently followed up by the Joint Search and Rescue (SAR) Team. Officers conducted a direct inspection of the location to determine whether the object captured by the drone was related to the whereabouts of the group of journalists who lost contact.

The Head of the Banten Basarnas Office, Al Amrad, stated that the KN SAR Tetuka had conducted sweeping operations around Mount Anak Krakatau up to the Panaitan area.

“The KN SAR Tetuka conducted searching around Anak Gunung Krakatau from Panaitan and performed monitoring approximately 4 km from Anak Gunung Krakatau,” said Al Amrad.

The SAR team also deployed several pieces of equipment to verify the circulating information.

“They deployed skiffs and riders to conduct searching based on the information obtained on the 13th that was circulating on Instagram,” he added.

According to Amrad, the field team also estimated the drone’s position when it recorded the object. From the inspection, the drone is estimated to have flown approximately 500 metres from the land of Mount Anak Krakatau.

However, after conducting inspections and cross-referencing information at the location, the object seen in the drone footage was not found.

“What we obtained after they performed a cross-check of that information was a negative result,” he stated.

Following the results of this inspection, the presence of the object in the drone video cannot yet be linked to the eight individuals who remain missing.