The strange reason family of Bali tourist won’t break their silence after she died in filthy $9-a-night hostel – as new report reveals what likely killed her
The grief-stricken parents of a young tourist have abandoned a search for answers as to why their only child died alone from a mysterious poisoning in her Bali party hostel as other guests were rushed to hospital.
Deqing Zhuoga, 24, died in her dorm room at the $9-a-night Clandestino Hostel in Canggu. It was undergoing fumigation for a bed bug infestation at the time; however, The Daily Mail can reveal no pesticides were found in her digestive system.
Her distraught family say they were never contacted by the hostel, local police or the Chinese Embassy to inform them of their daughter’s tragic death.
Instead, they were left to desperately post missing person photos on social media and beg for information until a kind-hearted local took it upon themselves to reach out and deliver the devastating news.
The couple, who do not speak English, later sought guidance from monks in China and have now ceased all communication because they believe further questions could disturb their daughter’s passage into the afterlife.
According to their cultural beliefs, conflict of any kind would weigh heavily on her spirit and they see allowing her to pass peacefully as their final act of honour.
Her furious friends, however, along with other hostel guests who survived what still appears to be a mass poisoning, have vowed to continue their fight to shut the hostel down, convinced that more lives will be lost if it remains open.
‘She was such an amazing friend and had so many cool plans,’ her friend Ms Avo told The Daily Mail. ‘It can’t just end like this it’s so unfair.’
Deqing Zhuoga died in her Bali accommodation, which was being fumigated for bed bugs
Ms Zhuoga, 24, was found unresponsive at the $9-a-night Clandestino Hostel in Canggu,
She said they are calling on the government to crack down on the dangers tourists are exposed to on the island, claiming that incidents like this are ‘happening almost everyday in Bali.’
Ms Zhuoga collapsed after falling violently ill on August 31, just days after the hostel had been fumigated for a raging bedbug outbreak that had triggered months of furious online complaints.
Around 20 guests began vomiting with at least 10 having to seek medical treatment and one admitted to ICU fighting for her life.
Ms Zhuoga was found unresponsive in her dorm by hotel staff on September 2 about 11am and pronounced dead.
Her family in China had no idea she was even ill, but they hadn’t heard from her since August 31, so were already deeply worried.
Their calls and messages went unanswered, and, unable to speak English with Bali locals or other tourists, her parents asked Ms Zhuoga’s cousin to help.
Her cousin quickly began contacting friends and posting to social media with pleas for information, eventually working out her last known location was the hostel.
On September 6, four days after her death, she sent a desperate message via social media asking whether Ms Zhuoga was still staying there.
Several guests collapsed with vomiting and chills at Canggu’s Clandestino Hostel
Ms Zhuoga’s cousin began sending messages to try to find her
It was not until the next day that the hostel replied, but instead of explaining the devastating situation or requesting contact details so authorities could speak with the family, they simply told them to reach out to the police and offered no further help.
The message read: ‘Dear Madam, We understand you are looking for Deqing and this must be very worrying for you.
‘The police have been involved in a matter concerning her, and they will need to be the ones to provide you with any information.
‘We recommend contacting the local police or embassy for all and any information.
‘Unfortunately the police have not shared details regarding her case so we are unable to give more information at this time. Regards, Clandestino.’
Ms Avo has slammed the hostel’s response, saying they did not offer any contact details for the local police which left the family with no idea who to approach.
She said the parents had already contacted the embassy, but received no information because the hostel had reported her nationality incorrectly.
It was only when the family found a local willing to help that a staff member quietly confirmed what had happened.
Friend Ms Avo has slammed the hostel’s response
Officials moved her body to two different morgues without telling the family
Her parents then began the painstaking task of locating her body as it had been moved twice to different morgues without ID.
‘They do not even speak English, probably this does not even make any sense to them,’ Ms Avo said. ‘They just saw what happened to their daughter and now they have to accept it which is so hard.
‘Their heart is broken, having put all efforts into raising her up and preparing everything for their only child. But I understand they just want peace now.’
The head of Badung Police’s investigation unit, First Inspector Azarul Ahmad, said on Wednesday that witnesses had been interviewed and Ms Zhuoga’s vomit was examined by Denpasar Forensic Laboratory.
‘There were no pesticide compounds, narcotics, cyanide, heavy metals such as arsenic, hazardous chemicals, or methanol detected,’ he said.
An examination of the medicines and food items in her bag was pending, he said, and while an autopsy had found no signs of violence on her body, it did show telltale signs of food poisoning.
‘The exact cause of death cannot be definitively determined, however, death due to gastrointestinal irritation leading to diarrhea, which resulted in dehydration and electrolyte imbalance, cannot be ruled out.’
According to the police report, Ms Zhuoga was initially taken to a doctor by hostel staff, but they claim she expressed concerns about paying for treatment and was returned to her dorm.
According to the police report Ms Zhuoga was initially taken to a doctor by hostel staff
The following morning, receptionist Eka Ayu discovered she had not checked out.
She unlocked the door and found the young woman face down, wearing only an unbuttoned blue shirt.
Police found vomit in a rubbish bin beside the bed and a post-mortem concluded her death from acute gastroenteritis and hypovolemic shock would likely have been preventable with proper medical treatment.
Ms Zhuoga had shared a communal dinner hours earlier with fellow guest Leila Li who survived after spending five days in intensive care.
Shortly after the dinner, guests began collapsing in hallways, vomiting blood, fainting and begging staff for medical help.
More than 20 people suffered collective poisoning and at least 10 were in critical condition.
By morning the sickness had ripped through the dorms with multiple guests admitted to local medical centres and the BIMC hospital.
Ms Li said by the time she was taken away in an ambulance her roommate was too ill to move and that she ‘messaged her from hospital telling her to go too’, but she never replied.
Rooms were sealed after more than 20 people suffered collective poisoning
Ms Li said by the time she was taken away in an ambulance her roommate was too ill to move
‘My doctor confirmed it was pesticide poisoning and food poisoning,’ she said.
‘I improved when I left the hostel, but when I returned to the room the symptoms came back.’
She said Ms Zhuoga mentioned that an adjacent dorm had recently been closed for fumigation after a severe bedbug infestation.
Ms Li along with travellers Melanie Irene, Alisa Kokonozi, Alahmadi Yousef Mohammed, Cana Clifford Jay and Leslie Zhao were later listed as victims in the official Kuta Police report.
Inspector Ahmad has confirmed that due to so many guests experiencing identical symptoms the hostel will be subject to further investigation, but survivors say authorities have been far too slow and fear more travellers could be hurt.
‘They are trying to cover it up and I want to warn people so this does not happen again,’ Ms Li said.
