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A ProMED-mail post
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
Date: Fri 30 Jan 2009
Source: The Telegraph online [edited]
Bali tourists warned about rabies
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The authorities in Bali are battling a rabies outbreak that has
spread across the island and is threatening its tourism industry. The
1st cases were reported in Denpasar and Badung districts last
November [2008], but this month it spread to Kuta, one of the main
tourist resorts.
Since the beginning of January [2009], the number of infected people
has increased from a "handful" a week to at least 10 a day, hospital
staff have said. A total of 6 deaths have been reported. More than 24
000 pet dogs have been vaccinated, while more than 1000 strays have
been culled.
"It could be that in the past few months there were a number of cases
that weren't reported," said Ken Wirasandhi, the director of services
at Sanglah, Bali's largest hospital. "We've received calls from
tourists asking about the rabies situation, but we haven't received
reports of any tourists being bitten by dogs," said Gede Nurjaya, the
head of the Bali Tourism Authority.
Tour operators report that the outbreak has not yet led to
cancellations, but admit it is vital that the spread of the disease
is contained quickly. A spokesman for the tour operator Kuoni, which
reported this week that Indonesia had moved up from 20th in 2007 to
16th in its annual list of popular long-haul destinations, said it
was making passengers aware of the risks, but that no one had cancelled.
Since the onset of the financial downturn, Bali has struggled to
attract visitors. The number of tourists has failed to reach the
levels experienced before the bombings in October 2002, which killed
202 people. A further setback has been the banning of Indonesia's
main carrier, Garuda, from European territory, because of safety concerns.
The Foreign Office has joined the United States and Australia in
issuing a warning to travellers about rabies in Bali. Rabies has been
reported on the Indonesian islands of Java and Flores [see ProMED
refs. below. - Mod.JW], but this is the 1st time it has been recorded
on Bali.
The World Health Organisation estimates that more than 40 000 people
die from rabies every year. Most deaths take place in developing
countries, particularly in South-East Asia. Since 1946, there have
been 23 deaths among Britons infected with rabies abroad. A woman,
from Belfast, was the last Briton killed by the virus. She died
earlier this month [January 2009] in a hospital.
Byline: Charles Starmer-Smith]
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail
[The Indonesian authorities' efforts to contain the outbreak of
canine rabies to a restricted region of the island of Bali do not
appear to be succeeding, since the identification of a handful of
suspected human cases in late 2008/early January 2009 to the current
10 infected [bitten?] people a day, and a total of 6 fatalities, is a
measure of the lack of success in controlling the spread of canine
rabies on the island. Previous experience on other neighboring island
indicates that canine rabies cannot be controlled in the absence of a
comprehensive and systematic vaccination programme.
A map of the island of Bali showing the location of the endangered
tourist area of Kuta at the base of the southernmost peninsula, is
available at:
The location of the island of Bali can be found using the
HealthMap/ProMED-mail interactive map of Indonesia at:
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