Those injured or killed by falling trees at Ubud’s Monkey Forest on Tuesday, 10 December 2024, will receive official compensation.
As reported by BeritaBali.com and NusaBali.com, the confirmation of compensation was issued by the General Manager of the Ubud Monkey Forest, Anak Agung Bagus Bhaskara, who said, “We cooperate with Jasa Rahaja; the indicative amount is between Rp. 100,000 until Rp. 1 billion.”
Jasa Raharja is a State-owned and operated all-risk insurer.
The bodies of the two women, Funny Justine Christine (32) from France and Kim Hyoeun (42) from South Korea, were placed in the custody of the morgue in Denpasar. A third victim, a woman, Lee Sunni (45) from South Korea, was seriously injured in the incident, underwent surgery, and is now recuperating in a local hospital.
Officials are standing by to assist the families of the two dead women in arranging the return of the remains to their respective homelands.
The Bendesa (traditional head) of Padangtegal, Ubud, I Made Parmita,56, offered his condolences to the families of the deceased women and pledged all support possible to the surviving families. The local community undertook a purification ceremony (upacara pecaruan) on Wraspati Pon Uye Temple Thursday, 12 December 2024. This followed a prayascita ceremony held shortly after the tragedy occurred at the scene of the accident.
Per Bali-Hindu beliefs, various religious rituals are being performed to neutralize any negative influences that may have precipitated the recent natural disaster. In the words of a local official, reflecting the local tendency to introspect when befallen by tragedy, Bhaskara said: “Maybe there was negligence, our unintentional mistakes. We beg and pray that it will not happen again. After all, this is related to a disaster that can happen anywhere, so we seek protection from the Almighty at Pura Dalem. Hopefully, this will not happen again.”
Bhaskara continued, saying that starting on Tuesday afternoon, when the tragedy occurred, the Monkey Forest Management temporarily sterilized the premises by banning visitors. “We are still focusing on cleaning up fallen trees and branches and addressing repairs on other damaged facilities,” he said. When the attraction would reopen remained unclear, dependent upon when the cleanliness and order of the grounds can be restored and the necessary ceremonies completed.
The Regional Secretary of Gianyar Regency, Dewa Gede Alit Mudiarta, conducted a post-natural-disaster review by the Head of the Gianyar Tourism Office, Wayan Gede Sedana Putra. “Regarding management, the Traditional hasVillage’s tourist attraction has been running well. However, this incident was an unavoidable disaster,” he explained.
Records kept by the Gianyar Regency Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) show that the seasonal rains falling since early December have been linked to 50 disasters. Falling trees and landslides dominated the incidents. At times similar to when the trees fell at the Ubud Monkey Forest, Gianyar BPBD received 23 similar reports.
Immediately after the incident, the Gianyar Regency moved to coordinate with the families of the victims. “In principle, the Gianyar Regency Government expresses its deepest condolences to the victims. We are also responsibly facilitating the victims,” Bhaskara explained.
The Gianyar Regional Administration has instructed eight tourist attractions under its management to put safety and anticipatory measures in place to prevent future incidents linked to the incriminate conditions accompanying Bali’s rainy season. As a result, the government is removing trees considered old and at risk of falling.
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