A woman who was supposed to be enjoying a vacation was thrust into a nightmare when she was left behind by her guide and their group.
The events that follow are heartbreaking, and now people are raising questions.
Keep reading to know more.
A 26-year-old woman slipped while hiking in Indonesia with a group of tourists early last Saturday morning.
Juliana Marins was hiking on Mount Rinjani. The mountain, while being one of Indonesia’s most popular tourist attractions, is also one of its most dangerous sites as the trails are steep and the weather is unpredictable.
Juliana’s sister, Mariana, took to social media to launch a campaign for a rescue effort for her sister. She informed people that her sister had gone hiking with a group of five people, including a guide.
On the second day of the trail, Juliana had grown too tired to continue and was allegedly left behind while the rest of the group including the guide continued forward.
“The guide only continued on his journey to reach the summit. We only have this information from local media. Juliana was desperate because no one came back for her, and she fell. They abandoned Juliana,” her sister Mariana wrote.
According to reports from Brazilian media, Juliana had falled about 300 m (approx. 980 feet) below the trail. She was located three hours later by a group of tourists who were passing by. The tourists used a drone and shared videos of Juliana they captured in online groups. The videos finally reached her family in Brazil.
Juliana’s family was given information by Indonesian authorities and the Brazilian Embassy in Jakarta about the situation the next day, Sunday, 22nd June 2025. They were told Juliana had received food, water, and clothing after the accident.
However, her sister Mariana alleges that these reports were not true. She said, “We spoke to people at the scene of the incident with Juliana and what we received is that the information that the rescue team brought her water, food, and clothing, as reported by the Indonesian authorities and the Brazilian embassy in Jakarta, is not true.
“The information we have is that so far, they have not managed to reach Juliana, who has been missing for more than 36 hours.”
Her sister also alleges that the videos of the 26-year-old being rescued were also not real.
“All the videos that were made are lies, including the one of the rescue team reaching her. “The video was forged to look like that, along with this message associated with it,” she said to the media.
On Sunday, her family reported that the search for Juliana had been suspended for the time being due to heavy fog and other adverse weather conditions affecting the rescue effort.
“She is still missing and our expectation is that in the next few hours this rescue will be resumed in an attempt to find Juliana. We would like an update with real information and we are worried about the race against time to save my sister,” her sister said.
The family had their hopes tied to a helicopter for a rescue. Her father criticized the Brazillian Embassy in Jakarta for their lack of support.
“We don’t know where she is. The authorities haven’t reached her. She hasn’t received water, she hasn’t received food. She’s been alone for more than 36 hours, and it seems like they don’t even know where she is now,” he said in an interview.
He shared his dismay, saying, “The embassy is not providing any support. The Brazilian government, which we tried to contact, is not helping us either. This is very sad and very serious. She is a 26-year-old girl, a Brazilian citizen, and no one aside from family and friends cares.”
Sadly, Juliana wasn’t rescued in time. A social media post from Juliana’s family informed everyone of her death: “Today, the rescue team managed to reach the place where Juliana Marins was. With great sadness, we inform you that she did not survive.
“We remain very grateful for all the prayers, messages of affection and support that we have received.”
Gunung Rinjani National Park released their own Facebook statement prior to the family’s announcement that Juliana had been ‘successfully monitored using a drone, in a position stuck on a rock cliff at a depth of 500 meters and visually motionless’.
The park added: “Two rescue personnel were deployed to reach the victim’s location and check the second anchor point at a depth of 350m (1,140 ft). However, after observation, two large overhangs were found before reaching the victim, making it impossible to install the anchor. The rescue team had to climb to reach the victim.”
Juliana has been backpacking through Asia since earlier this year, starting in February. Prior to Indonesia, she had visited the Philippines, Vietnam, and Thailand.
All in all, this has been a heartbreaking story. We are sending our thoughts and prayers to Juliana’s family and friends as they navigate this loss. Share this with others to keep them updated with this story.
