Jakarta (ANTARA) - Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs, Budi Gunawan, on Friday announced the temporary closure of hiking trails at Mount Rinjani National Park following a series of accidents involving foreign tourists.

The decision to temporarily close hiking trails and evaluate the park’s operations was made in consultation with the National Police (Polri), Indonesian Military (TNI), and the West Nusa Tenggara provincial government.

“During the closure period, we will revise the standard operating procedures (SOP) for hiking and emergency evacuation to ensure they are more responsive and effective in extreme conditions,” Gunawan said in a statement released here.

In addition to improving operational procedures in the Mt. Rinjani tourist area, the government will also revamp safety facilities and increase the availability of emergency equipment to offer better protection to visitors.

Minister Gunawan affirmed that the safety equipment will be gradually upgraded to ensure it meets established standards.

“Before reopening (the hiking trail), a feasibility verification will be conducted by the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas), TNI, Polri, and the Indonesian mountaineering team,” he informed.

“The trails will only reopen if all safety standards have been fully met through inter-agency coordination,” he stated.

Earlier, on Wednesday, a hiker from Switzerland, identified by the initials BE, was reported to have fallen while descending Mount Rinjani.

He suffered a leg fracture and head injuries in the incident. However, his condition was reported to be stable.

The Ministry of Tourism on Friday said that BE was evacuated safely and swiftly.



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