Joint SAR Team Evacuates Unconscious Hiker on Mount Agung, Bali

A joint SAR team successfully evacuated a climber who lost consciousness while ascending Mount Agung in Karangasem Regency, Bali, on Saturday (18/7/2026).

The victim, identified as I Gusti Agung Eka Sanjaya, 45, had initially been climbing with a party of eight. They began their journey from the Pura Pasar Agung starting point in Selat District at around 12.00 WITA (Central Indonesia Time). However, after walking for roughly two hours, the victim suffered severe exhaustion and lost consciousness at an altitude of 2,200 metres above sea level (MDPL).

The Denpasar Search and Rescue Office, upon receiving the information, immediately deployed personnel from the Karangasem SAR Post. To speed up the response, guides from the Pasar Agung Social Forestry Business Group (KUPS) were dispatched in advance to the coordinates of the victim’s location.

“At 15.00, the first team, consisting of 25 local Pasar Agung guides, set out to accelerate the evacuation,” said Putu Bhayangkara, Coordinator of the Karangasem Search and Rescue Post. Simultaneously, nine personnel from the Karangasem SAR Post also moved towards the Pasar Agung Climbing Post as a support team.

At around 15.30, the first team managed to reach the victim’s position at an altitude of 2,200 MDPL. Subsequently, at 16.40, Search and Rescue Unit (SRU) 2, comprising 15 members, followed up the mountain and met the first team at an altitude of 2,100 MDPL during the victim’s descent.

The victim was carried down while still unconscious. The joint SAR team finally arrived at the Pasar Agung Post at around 18.00. Upon reaching the bottom, I Gusti Agung Eka Sanjaya immediately received initial medical treatment from the Selat Community Health Centre (Puskesmas) team before being rushed to the health centre by ambulance for further examination.

The evacuation operation involved various joint elements, including the Karangasem Search and Rescue Post, Selat Police Sector, Babinsa and Bhabinkamtibmas of Selat, the Karangasem Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), the Selat Fire and Rescue Service, Selat Village Puskesmas, local KUPS guides from Pasar Agung, the Pura Pasar Agung public relations team, the victim’s companions, and local residents.