After killing three illegal loggers just last week, tigers fatally attacked a further two workers Sunday night in the Sungai Gelam district, Muarojambi, taking the number of people mauled by wild animals in the regency since January to nine.  

The identities of the two loggers are not yet known but their remains have been evacuated from the attack site, about 45 kilometers from the where the last victim was found.

“We have deployed our people to the location where both loggers were killed,” head of Jambi Natural Resources Conservation Center (BKSDA) Didy Wurjanto said.

He said his office would try to trap the tigers, most likely males, but was unsure whether it was the same tiger that mauled the previous victims.  

Of the nine people reportedly attacked by tigers between Jan. 24 and March 1 in the regency, only one has survived.

Didy said most of the victims were involved in illegal logging, which along with the huts, railways and equipment indicated the banned industry was still thriving in the region.

“It’s very concerning that those financing these logging operations continue sending workers into the forest despite the obvious dangers posed by these aggressive tigers,” Didy said.

So far only one tiger has been captured by the Jambi BKSDA since the attacks began mounting. Nicknamed Salma, the female tiger is being temporarily kept at the Jambi City Zoo, where after she is attached with a GPS (Global Positioning System) device she will be released into the wild.  

In another incident, 48-year-old Jahri reportedly died after being attacked by a tiger in Lampung on Sunday night. Traces of the animal’s presence were found around a village where the farmer was found unconscious and severely wounded.

“We live in fear because tigers frequently enter our village,” Jahri’s wife, Sumini, said.

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