
Bali, Indonesia – On October 3 last year, 64-year-old United States citizen Robinaugh Clifford Neil and nine other foreign tourists set off on two inflatable rafts for a white-water rafting trip down the Ayung River, the longest and holiest river in Bali.
The first half of the trip progressed smoothly. But when the group stopped for a break at a riverside kiosk, the river rose dramatically. A female vendor advised the two rafting guides to abort the trip but the advice was ignored, according to a member of the search party that followed.