Six missing climbers found

PADANG, West Sumatra: Six of the 12 young mountain climbers who went missing on Mount Merapi nine days ago were found on the edge of a ravine at Hantu hill on Saturday.

Two of the climbers were dead, and the four survivors were extremely weak when they were found by rescue teams, private television station SCTV reported on Sunday.

One of the corpses was identified as Ryan, while the other body had yet to be identified.

Rescuers were unable to evacuate the two bodies and four survivors as of Sunday due to bad weather and the difficult terrain.

The team was reportedly waiting for reinforcements from the National Police's Mobile Brigade.

Rescue coordinator Darmon told The Jakarta Post his team first spotted three of the high school students at around 2 p.m. on Saturday. "We planned an immediate evacuation, but heavy rain and thick fog prevented us from removing them," he said.

Chief of the Koto Baru Police, First Lt. E. Siregar said the other missing students were believed to be located in the areas of Palago and Situnggang near Hantu hill. (28/edt)