Two of four missing sand miners swept away by Merapi's cold lava flow have been found dead

Two of the four sand miners who disappeared after being swept away by Merapi’s cold lava flood in the Senowo River (south-western flank of Merapi), Magelang Regency, Central Java, have been found dead. A joint search and rescue (SAR) team is continuing to search for the other two missing victims. Head of the Semarang SAR Office, Budiono, said the two missing men found dead were Heru Setyawan (25), a resident of Krinjing Village, and Arif Fuad Hasan (26), a resident of Srumbung, Magelang. ‘As of this afternoon, the joint SAR team has located and evacuated the two victims named Fuad and Heru, who died. They were found entangled among river rocks,’ he said on Wednesday (4 March 2026). ‘Fuad was found at 06:00 local time at a distance of 2.1 kilometres from the scene, and Heru at 07:37 WIB, 600 metres from the scene, after which they were taken to Muntilan Regional General Hospital.’ He added that two more victims are still missing and being searched for. They have been identified as Maryuni and Hasyim. Earlier, it was reported that Merapi’s cold lava flood in the Senowo River also claimed the life of a Semarang resident named Iman Setiawan (21).