Red Cross gives cash to Bali victims

Red Cross gives cash to Bali victims

The Australian Red Cross has finished distributing the AS$15.4 million (US$11 million) it raised to help victims of the Bali bombings and boost medical services on the Indonesian island, the organization said on Monday.

The blasts that ripped through two crowded bars on the tourist island on Oct. 12, 2002, killed 202 people including 88 Australians. Many survivors were left severely burned and requiring years of medical treatment.

"As at the end of June 2004, the Australian Red Cross distributed the total of A$10.3 million (US$7.2 million) to assist 570 Australians," the Red Cross said in a statement.

The fund, which was inundated with donations in the aftermath of the bombings, also gave A$3.6 million (US$2.5 million) to upgrade emergency and health services in Bali.

The remainder of the cash was spent on administration costs and other projects set up in the wake of the bombings, the Red Cross said. --AP