Bantul Regency Government Closes Oyo River Water Tourism For Management Improvement

The Oyo River in the Selopamioro Park area, Imogiri District, Bantul Regency, Yogyakarta Special Region (ANTARA/Hery Sidik)

BANTUL - The Bantul Regency Government, Yogyakarta Special Region, has temporarily closed water tourism activities on the Oyo River in the Selopamioro Park area, Imogiri District, to improve the management capacity of these tourist destinations.

Camat Imogiri Slamet Santosa mengatakan penutupan sementara itu diberlakukan mulai 30 Agustus 2023, setelah dilakukan evaluasi bersama oleh Pemkab Bantul dan pihak terkait menyusul dua kejadian kecelakaan air dalam waktu dekat dan menyebabkan korban meninggal.

"Tourism growth around the Oyo River is experiencing ups and downs, and whatever happens is a shared responsibility. Including the recent water accident, it has become an evaluation material so that tourism management capacity in Selopamioro Park will be better," he said as quoted by ANTARA, Thursday, August 31.

During the closure of water tourism at the Oyo River, it is hoped that all relevant parties can clean up, increase management capacity, map vulnerable points, and add warning signs that are easy for visitors to read.

Meanwhile, the Head of the Development Division of the Bantul Tourism Office Destination, Yuli Hernadi, said that water tourism in the Oyo River is classified as dangerous, so security issues must be taken seriously, therefore increasing the capacity and security of water tourism must be carried out.

"Security security is mandatory. Regarding buoys, for example, all visitors are required to use buoys if they want to enjoy water tourism. Even though they are experts in swimming, the buoy is still mandatory," he said.

In addition, he said, the legality of tourism destination management must also be considered because it will facilitate the flow of guidance and settlement if there are emergency matters that occur in the field.

Meanwhile, Head of SAR DIY Bantul Bondan District Supriyanto said the Oyo River has characteristics that look calm on the surface, but has several water vortices and water currents that are not trapped.

"Based on our mitigation from 2017-2018, parts of the Oyo River have water vortices. This is due to the presence of rock or natural rock which causes water cavities below. So, even though the water level looks calm, it can cause visitors who are not careful to be sucked in by water vortices," he said.