Bahorok resort reopens after 8 months<\/p>\n
Apriadi Gunawan, Medan<\/p>\n
The Bukit Lawang tourist area in Bahorok district, North Sumatra,
\nhas reopened to the public after being closed for eight months
\nfollowing a flash flood in December that left over 180 people
\ndead and 80 missing.<\/p>\n
Langkat Vice Regent Yunus Saragih released three orangutans
\ninto the wild and planted young meranti trees around the resort
\nto mark its reopening on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Residents in the area hailed the reopening, although much of
\nthe infrastructure in the area is still in bad shape, including
\nthe main road leading to Bahorok, which is badly potholed.<\/p>\n
The residents said they were happy as they could now reopen
\ntheir businesses in the resort.<\/p>\n
Most of the people living in Bukit Lawang are vendors selling
\nfood, beverages and handicrafts. Many also provide cheap tourist
\naccommodation.<\/p>\n
A local community figure, Mujeni, said the residents had
\nwanted the resort to be reopened earlier as many foreign tourists
\nhad continued to visit Bukit Lawang, unaware that it was closed.<\/p>\n
\"When they came here, they always asked when Bukit Lawang
\nwould be reopened. They wanted it to be reopened as quickly as
\npossible so that they could visit the orangutan rehabilitation
\ncenter. It is these sort of tourists who make our businesses
\nprosper,\" Mujeni said.<\/p>\n
The vice regent said the government had banned residents from
\nrenovating structures or erecting new ones within a distance of
\n100 meters on either side of the river.<\/p>\n
The ban was issued to prevent the possibility of more
\ndisasters as there were still many logs in the upstream area that
\ncould be propelled downstream during flooding, with disastrous
\nconsequences, Yunus explained.<\/p>\n
He said the local government was planning to build 354 low-
\ncost houses on a 14-hectare site for the victims of the December
\nflood.<\/p>\n
The central government recently allocated Rp 25 billion
\n(US$2.8 million) for the Bahorok victims so that they could
\nrebuild their homes and damaged facilities.<\/p>\n
The director of the Mount Leuser National Park management
\nboard, Hartlamas Susetyo, said that based on routine surveys,
\nthere were currently at least 237 orangutans in Bukit Lawang.<\/p>\n
Of the 20 orangutans in the resort's quarantine area, three
\nwere infants. \"They are in good shape and are under continuous
\nobservation,\" he said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/bahorok-resort-reopens-after-8-months-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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