JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Rescuers on Saturday recovered the body of an Indonesian woman who was caught in a volcanic eruption at Mount Dukono on Indonesia 's remote island of Halmahera a day earlier, as search operations continued to find the bodies of two Singaporeans, officials said.
The slain hikers were among 20 who set out to ascend the 1,355-meter (4,445-foot) volcano in defiance of safety restrictions and became stranded when Dukono erupted early Friday, spewing a thick ash column that rose about 10 kilometers (6 miles) into the air.
The woman, identified by authorities only as Enjel and known as a local hiker, was located Saturday afternoon, about 50 meters (165 feet) from the rim of the main crater, said Iwan Ramdani, who heads local Search and Rescue Office. The location of the bodies of two Singaporean climbers remains unknown, and rescue teams are continuing operations amid high volcanic activity, he said.
“The rescue efforts went through a situation that required careful calculation and a well-planned evacuation strategy,” Ramdani said, “We took into account the potential escalation of volcanic activity as well as the safety of all personnel.”
Hours after the eruption, 17 climbers had been safely evacuated, including seven Singaporean nationals and two Indonesians who eventually joined the rescue operation and provided information on climbing routes of the victims before the eruption. Ten of those evacuated suffered minor burn injuries.
The search operation that involved more than 100 personnel supported by drones resumed early Saturday, focusing on a 700 square-meter (7,500 square-foot) area where clues were found during earlier searches, despite hazardous terrain and continuing eruptions, according to Ramdani.
He said rescuers were prioritizing safety because Dukono’s volcanic activity remains elevated.
“The main challenge in this search effort is that we are racing against ongoing eruptions,” Ramdani said in a video statement, “When the authorities declare conditions safe, we move closer to the crater area, but when an eruption occurs, we must immediately secure all search personnel from potential danger.”
Indonesia’s volcanology agency reported multiple eruptions from early Saturday through late morning, including ash columns rising as high as 3,000 meters (nearly 10,000 feet) above the crater. Lava bursts were also observed overnight from a monitoring post near the volcano.
Mount Dukono has been on the second-highest alert level status since 2008. Authorities enforced a four-kilometer (2.5-mile) exclusion zone around the active crater in December 2024.
Local authorities formally closed all hiking routes to Mount Dukono in April and reinforced the ban following Friday’s incident. The National Disaster Management Agency warned that entering restricted zones could result in legal sanctions.
The agency urged climbers and tour operators to comply with safety recommendations, noting that similar restrictions apply to dozens of other active volcanoes across the country currently at elevated alert levels.
Indonesia, an archipelago nation of more than 270 million people, sits along the Pacific “Ring of Fire” and is home to more than 120 active volcanoes.
In this photo released by the Badan Geologi, the geological agency of Indonesia's Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Mount Dukono releases volcanic materials during an eruption in North Halmahera, Indonesia, Friday, May 8, 2026. (Badan Geologi via AP)
MORRISTOWN, N.J. (AP) — Jim Miller built his MMA career — his reputation, really — on durability and reliability on his way to a record UFC fight total and to becoming the promotion's career wins leader.
Hefty marks — even without winning a championship — for the New Jersey native trusted enough to get plugged into most of UFC's milestone cards in its rise into a billion-dollar global sports behemoth.
“I'm not just out there just to win,” Miller said of his fight style. “I'm out there to win to make me happy; to make me excited with the way that happens.”
Miller's joy was dimmed over the last year when his teenage son was diagnosed with a rare form of childhood cancer. He dropped the fight week schedule for hospital visits and threw his focus into his family — all while knowing he would indeed return to the cage again.
When Miller fights Jared Gordon in a lightweight bout on Saturday night at UFC 328 in Newark, New Jersey, he'll mark more than his 47th career UFC fight and aim for his 28th career UFC victory.
He'll celebrate fighting for the first time since his son beat cancer.
Wyatt Miller was diagnosed with rhadbomyosacroma, a rare type of cancer that starts as a growth of cells in soft tissue and is more common in childhood.
Miller said the cancer cells were tucked into his son's left eye socket and sinus area and first popped up as a sign of trouble last July when Wyatt complained that it felt like he had something stuck in his eye. There was a noticeable lump that indeed proved cancerous.
The health issues were, naturally, scary for all involved, though the family was grateful the cancer did not spread and force Wyatt to face more dire circumstances.
“The vast majority of it came out when they did the biopsy,” Miller said. “It kind of just popped out on its own.”
Wyatt underwent two courses of chemotherapy and fives week of proton radiation at Rutgers University Cancer Institute that Miller said doctors told the family could have potential side effects later in life. Wyatt will need scans and MRIs about every three months for the next year or so, to make sure the cancer has not returned.
He'll need scans and cancer check-ups for rhadbomyosacroma well into his 20s. The disease had some ill effects on Wyatt's vision but doctors said the tumors didn't seem to present behind the eyeball and get tangled up in the optic nerves, which could have led to permanent damaging effects with his vision.
“He's just a stud,” Miller said with a smile. “He's just an amazing young man.”
Miller, tied for second with most finishes and most submissions in UFC history, has made a nice financial life for himself in a sport where fighter pay lags well behind the eight-figure annual salaries found in the traditional stick-and-ball sports. Yet, because UFC fighters are classified as independent contractors, not employees, the company is not obligated to provide benefits such as health insurance or retirement plans.
So, it doesn't.
Miller pays for his own health insurance plan for his family and admitted that — while, yes, he had a bit more of a financial cushion — the out-of-pocket bills and other expenses have piled up during Wyatt's cancer battle.
“It is what it is, right? We are contractors and that's the way it goes,” Miller said. “We acted quickly, and he got treatment quickly, and he needed it quickly. We were lucky it was just where it was because it tends to spread to the lungs.”
Miller expected his wife and their four children — including Wyatt — to attend his fight for one of the few times in his career.
His son's cancer scare kept him out of the cage for 13 months, an eternity for a fighter who made a habit of competing multiple times a year. Miller lost to Chase Hooper at UFC 314 in April 2025 and admitted he missed “that push, the grind of it” of all those training camps in his life without a fight to train for.
Miller is a New Jersey native and cut his teeth as a young pro in MMA cards in the state and has since seemingly fought on every East Coast card since his UFC debut in 2008. He first fought in Newark at UFC 111 in 2010 and has the distinction of being the only fighter to compete at UFC 100, UFC 200 and UFC 300.
He turns 43 in August, making UFC 400 seem like the ultimate long shot, even though he's not quite ready to hang up his gloves.
Consider, when the 37-year-old Gordon made his UFC debut in 2017, Miller already had 26 fights on his resume under the company banner.
Miller credited his longevity in large part to good health and good fortune — he rattled off a list of fighters and coaches he knows who suffered freak injuries — to a career that may put his career fights record out of reach by the time he finally retires.
“I've always tried to train like a professional,” Miller said. “That's really kind of it.”
AP MMA: https://apnews.com/hub/mixed-martial-arts
FILE - Jim Miller reacts after defeating Damon Jackson in a UFC 309 mixed martial arts lightweight title bout, Nov. 16, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger, File)
