Tuesday, September 8
Fines issued across island; foreigners in Badung who refuse to pay reported to Immigration + Hospitals close wards & ERs due to lack of staff, outbreaks + Cok Ace blames tourists for new cases + more!
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Weather & Waves
Today’s Weather for Southern Bali
Today’s Tides
Surf Outlook
Weather forecast from Indonesia’s Meteorology, Climatology & Geophysics Council (Link)
Tide table from Tide-forecast.com.
Surf outlook via Windy.com.
Local Covid Numbers
*NOTE: Click here to see the complete breakdown of yesterday’s numbers + trendlines in our evening update. And in case you missed it, check out Sunday’s update for a summary of last week’s overall totals, with perspective on how they stack up against previous weeks + detailed breakdowns of the virus’ spread on a Regency-by-Regency level.
The Big News
"Two Wards Closed At Buleleng Hospital Due to Lack of Covid Nurses" from Radar Bali (Indonesian): Buleleng Hospital still lacks nurses to handle Covid-19 patients who are being treated there. In fact, the hospital management has provided several health workers to optimize treatment. As a result, management was forced to close two hospital wards. Inpatient wards that were closed were the Kenanga Room and the Jempiring Room... Deputy Director of Medical Services at Buleleng Hospital, dr. Putu Sudarsana, Sp.OG. admitted that currently the availability of nurses in RSUD is limited. Ideally, each Covid patient needs 4 nurses. Now there are 47 recorded beds to treat covid patients. So when talking about ideal, it takes 188 nurses there. In fact, there are only 76 nurses available to treat covid patients at Buleleng Hospital. So it still needs 112 more nurses.
"After Payangan Hospital, Sanjiwani Regional Hospital IGD Also Temporarily Closed" from Nusa Bali (Indonesian): After the Emergency Installation (IGD) and Polyclinic of Payangan Hospital, now it is the emergency room for Sanjiwani Gianyar Hospital to be temporarily closed, because a number of health workers have been confirmed positive for Covid-19. The IGD at Sanjiwani Hospital was closed for almost a week, 5-9 September 2020, for sterilization because 3 health workers were exposed to Covid-19. They consist of 2 doctors and a nurse whose daily duties are in the emergency room of Sanjiwani Hospital. In addition, 25 emergency personnel at Sanjiwani Hospital are also waiting for the results of the swab test.
"Netted in Raids, Tourists in Bali Do Not Wear Masks, fined IDR 100,000" from iNews Bali (Indonesian): A number of foreign nationals (WNA) in Bali paid a fine of Rp. 100,000 for not wearing a mask . They were caught in the mask raids which took effect today, Monday in the Kuta area. Not only local residents, the raid also targeted foreigners. "They think that as long as they ride a car and motorbike, they don't need to wear a mask. Even though the rules are as long as you leave the house even though you ride a motorbike or car, you still have to wear a mask," said Head of Satpol PP Badung Regency, I Gusti Agung Ketut Suyanegara... This mask raid did not go smoothly. Satpol PP officers were forced to argue with a number of foreigners who did not receive a fine of Rp. 100,000 for not wearing a mask. A total of 10 foreigners were caught in the raids because they did not use masks. However, only two people were willing to pay the Rp. 100,000 fine. Meanwhile, those who were not willing to pay the fine were then recorded as having their identities reported to immigration.
(Ed. Note: In a follow-up story, it was noted that during another patrol where 2 more foreigners were fined, locals who were unable - or who refused - to pay were given the option of manual labor as punishment, and were put to work cleaning local government offices for several hours.)
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Other Headlines
"Singaraja Bali BPJS Health Office Closed After 1 Employee Tests Positive for Covid-19" from iNews Bali (Indonesian): The Singaraja Branch of BPJS Kesehatan , Buleleng Regency, Bali closed the office for three days. This was done after one of the employees was a close contact with the family who was exposed to Covid-19. The employee did an independent swab and the results were positive. After testing positive, the contract employee went into isolation at home because he didn't show any symptoms. "The person concerned is self-isolating at home because he has no asymptomatic symptoms," said Gede Suyasa, Secretary of the Buleleng Covid-19 Task Force... To prevent the spread in his work environment, the Head of the Singaraja Branch of the BPJS Kesehatan Office decided to temporarily close office services for three days. Other employees who have been in contact with the employee temporarily undergo independent home quarantine for 14 days. He said, during the closure and the implementation of the worf from home policy, BPJS Health services were carried out online.
"Health Workers Become Cluster in Denpasar, 126 Have Been Exposed to COVID-19" from The IDN Times (Indonesian): As many as 126 health workers have been exposed to COVID-19 since March 2020. In addition, several hospital isolation room service capacities have begun to become full. "The focus of handling will be maximized starting from villages or sub-districts that have a fluctuating number of cases and a high risk of transmission of COVID-19," Mayor of Denpasar, Rai Mantra, said... COVID-19 cases in Denpasar City have been surging since the last week, with 18 villages or sub-districts having recorded additional positive cases. "According to predictions, in September, COVID-19 cases have experienced a surge. This condition occurs in almost all parts of Indonesia," Rai Mantra said.
"17 People Without Masks Caught in Joint Operation of in Buleleng" from Antara (Indonesian): "Judging from the number of offenders caught in the joint operation of health protocols, it can be concluded that there are still some people who do not follow the government's recommendations," said Head of the Buleleng District Civil Service Police Unit (Satpol PP), Putu Artawan. His party had previously carried out socialization related to the implementation of the COVID-19 health protocol since six months ago and successive socializations coupled with the distribution of masks with the joint team have also been carried out since seven days ago. "However, there are still people who violate the COVID-19 health protocol. This means that the level of discipline or willingness to be healthy for the community is still lacking," he said.
"Cok Ace: Many People Who Travel Have Not Implemented Health Protocols Well" from The Bali Tribune (Indonesian): Since the reopening of tourist attractions for local people, there has been a build-up in several tourist attractions in Bali. The enthusiasm of the community for traveling has brought them in droves to various regions, such as Kintamani and Bedugul. "Unfortunately, many of them have not implemented proper health protocols. Some do not wear a mask, or the mask is on the chin. That is what we want to put in order,” said Deputy Governor of Bali, Cok Ace. For him, the government does not immediately issue regulations and take direct action against its citizens.
"Positive Patients Shrinking, But VIP Ward At Klungkung Hospital Still Used As Isolation Room" from Radar Bali (Indonesian): As of yesterday there were 39 positive patients and 12 patients suspect Covid-19 who were still being treated at Klungkung Hospital. Even so, the Klungkung Hospital VIP room still functions as an isolation room. Apart from the fact that many patients have recovered, it is also because the Covid-19 case is experiencing a downward trend... "Today (yesterday), we treated 39 positive patients and 12 patients suspect Covid-19. It's just that Covid-19 patients must be treated in the ICU is still high. From the capacity of the special ICU room for Covid-19, around 6 beds, currently seven beds are filled," said Director of Klungkung Hospital, Dr. Nyoman Kesuma.
"First Day of Implementation of Pergub Number 46 in Denpasar City, Zero Violations" from Bali Puspa News (Indonesian): Head of Satpol PP Denpasar City, Dewa Gede Anom Sayoga, said that enforcement on the first day was carried out by the Denpasar City Satpol PP together with a joint team from elements of the Police, TNI, Attorney General's Office, Courts, and the Regional Apparatus Organizations of the Denpasar City Government in front of the Bali Museum in the Puputan Badung field area. "Don't let one person not use a mask make it difficult or infect many people. Transmission of such things must be stopped," he said.
"Central Java Holds Simulation of Face-to-face Learning Amid COVID-19 Pandemic" from Tempo: “The simulation is carried out in seven schools in Tegal city, Wonosobo regency, and Temanggung regency for two weeks. After that we will evaluate the results,” said the acting head of the Education and Culture Agency, Padmaningrum. He explained that the simulation only involved 100 students, while others were still asked to practice online distance learning... The principal of SMA Pius, Lidwina, said her school had been ready to conduct face-to-face learning activities since the new academic year. “We have prepared the facilities and infrastructure, starting from the students’ and teachers’ rooms, isolation rooms, hand washing stations, hand sanitizers, and body thermometer units,” she said.
How You Can Help
In response to the collapse of the tourism sector in Bali and the resulting economic crisis, dozens of individuals and organizations have sprung into action, raising funds and distributing badly needed food and everyday essentials to the innumerable families who have suddenly found themselves without any source of income. We've been making an effort to document and raise awareness of these efforts. We will add information on projects in this space as we are able to confirm them. If you'd like to see a list of the efforts that we've featured so far and contribute to them with either time or money, visit our complete list here. You can also see a list of projects that have registered themselves at BaliSolidarity.org. If you know of an effort and would like to have them listed, please send their information to newsletter@migrationmedia.net.
About This Newsletter
This newsletter is a product of Migration Media, the hub for stories from and about the international migrant experience.
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