Indonesian search and rescue teams are combing the waters of the Sunda Strait for eight people, including five photojournalists, who went missing while heading to the volcanic island of Anak Krakatau to cover its ongoing eruption. The group departed by speedboat from Carita, a coastal town in Banten province on Java's northwestern coast, on the afternoon of Monday, 7 September. The last known contact came at 6:13 p.m., when one of the journalists shared his location with a colleague near the volcano's waters. Nothing has been heard from the group since.
The missing journalists worked for Indonesia's state news agency Antara, Turkey's Anadolu Agency, and several local outlets including the news website iNews. They were accompanied by two boat crew members and a route guide. Their last known position was roughly 18.5 kilometres from shore. Search operations, which began on Tuesday, were initially suspended due to high waves and poor visibility before resuming on Wednesday with an expanded effort involving police, military personnel, fishermen, volunteers, high-speed rescue boats, inflatable dinghies, and drones equipped with thermal imaging technology.
Anak Krakatau — whose name means