REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BANDAR LAMPUNG -- After four years of physical development, Elephant Hospital was operated in forest areas of Way Kambas National Park (TNWK), East Lampung, Lampung Province. This first elephant hospital in Indonesia and Asia would serve elephants that were ill or victims of disasters.

"Thursday (5/11), Minister of Environment and Forestry, Siti Nurbaya, will inaugurate and open the Elephant Hospital," said Head of Public Relations of TNWK, Sukatmoko, to Republika in East Lampung, Wednesday (4/11) ,

According to him, this elephant hospital was the first in Indonesia and TNWK be the vanguard for health care of elephants. The hospital, he added, was providing veterinarians and paramedics, and also health facilities and treatment rooms.

The development of this hospital in TNWK was started in 2012. It was cooperation between Minister of Environment and Forestry, Taman Safari Indonesia (TSI) and Australian Zoo.

TSI and Australia Zoo were committed to contribute to improvement of infrastructure in Elephant Activity Center in Way Kambas. The first elephant hospital in Indonesia and Asia has a size of 42 m x 24 m. While, the house of mahout/elephant handler has a size of 28 m x 13 m, wells drilled has a depth of 120-150 m for clean water, and there is also drinking place for elephant.

The hospital could also be used for other animals, thus it helped to rescue animals that need health care caused by natural disasters, conflicts and other acts of vandalism.

TNWK has Elephant Conservation Centre with number of elephants as much as 65 heads. The target was to support elephant conservation on a regional basis, to establish of a sense of public awareness of the elephant, to accommodate elephant training programs, education and research, and ecotourism.

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