DENPASAR, Bali — Seven foreign nationals are among 22 unclaimed and abandoned bodies being cremated in Bali after some had remained in the mortuary at Prof. Ngoerah General Hospital for years.
The cremations are being carried out over two days, October 27 and 28, at the Dharma Kerti crematorium in Kerobokan. Hospital director I Gusti Ngurah Ketut Sukadarma said the group includes 13 adults and nine infants or foetuses.
The seven foreign nationals include three people from the Netherlands, two from the United States and two from Australia.
Some of the remains had been stored at the hospital since 2023. The longest had been kept for around 1,100 days, while the average storage period was about 475 days.
Sukadarma said the hospital coordinated with police to establish the legal status of the bodies before cremation could proceed. In cases involving foreign nationals, coordination was also carried out with the relevant consular representatives.
Not all of the bodies were unidentified. Some had known identities or nationalities but had not been collected or otherwise claimed, while others remained unidentified.
The accumulated hospital bill linked to the 22 cases has reached more than Rp4 billion. The figure includes medical treatment received before death as well as costs associated with keeping the bodies in the hospital mortuary.
Bali’s provincial social services agency allocated Rp170 million this year to help cover the handling and cremation of abandoned remains.
Authorities said the process was also necessary to prevent overcrowding at the hospital mortuary and ensure space remained available for other families.
Beginning in 2027, Bali’s social services agency plans to arrange the handling of unclaimed bodies twice a year instead of once annually, in an effort to prevent remains from accumulating for extended periods.
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