MATARAM

An Italian tourist was killed when she fell into a ravine while climbing Mount Rinjani on Bali’s eastern neighbour Lombok, police said on Tuesday.

The 27-year-old woman and her French boyfriend, accompanied by porters and a guide, had begun the trek up the active volcano on Sunday, local police chief Ketut Matria said.

“But on Monday, she slipped while walking on a narrow path of a cliff and fell 80 metres into the ravine,” he added.

Porters managed to haul the body up using bamboo and ropes and it is to be taken by boat to Bali, according to porters and officials.

“Her head was crushed and she had wounds on her arms,” Saiful, a porter who accompanied the couple, said.

“The accident happened so suddenly. The area was slippery and there were many cliffs there and we had to be very careful when walking,” Saiful said.

Mount Rinjani is a popular trekking spot for tourists and had been off-limits to climbers due to recent volcanic activity that sent plumes of smoke high into the air.

A young Swedish man was killed in March when he slipped and fell into Bali’s Mt Batur volcano.