Karanganyar, C Java (ANTARA) - The Ministry of Forestry has extended the closure of climbing routes on five mountains due to extreme weather during the rainy season.
"Climbing routes on five mountains managed by the Ministry of Forestry -- Mount Gede Pangrango, Mount Halimun Salak, Mount Merapi, Mount Merbabu, and Mount Rinjani -- have been closed due to extreme weather," Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni said on Friday.
He added that the decision to temporarily close the routes was based on inputs from relevant parties, including the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) and the Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG).
"The decision was made for safety reasons due to extreme weather," the minister emphasized.
However, he said that his ministry could not confirm how long the climbing routes would remain closed.
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"We will announce the reopening when we receive updates from the BMKG and recommendations from PVMBG," he said.
He pointed out that relevant stakeholders would use the closure period to improve the mountain ecosystem.
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Meanwhile, Antoni stated that the climbing route on Mount Semeru, located in the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park in East Java Province, has been reopened.
"We have just opened the route to Mount Semeru up to Ranu Kumbolo, as there was a warning that hiking within a 3.5 km radius of the summit is not allowed," he said, referring to a point along the hiking route to Mount Semeru.