surfaid 16 Sep 2007No Comments 242 views Print Email

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Isolation hampers relief effort

In Betumonga, 80 per cent of homes uninhabitable
Authorities in the southern islands of the Mentawais are still awaiting news from isolated communities located nearer to the epicentre of last week’s powerful earthquakes where at least two people are reportedly dead.

Information is slowly filtering through to the southern capital Sikakap, where more than 120 houses have been destroyed and many more damaged.

But isolation, lack of radio or telephone communication, and a fuel crisis are hampering efforts to get to these vulnerable communities.

News from the largest village Malakopa is that homes and facilities have been completely destroyed and more than 300 families displaced. There is need for food, shelter and clean water. There are also reports of illness such as fever as the monsoon lashes these islands.

In Bulasat village there are unconfirmed reports that a young boy and man were killed after a church wall collapsed.

The Mentawai Regent and Deputy Regent visited Silabu today and a small boat carrying tarpaulins, noodles and tents arrived in the port.

“That won’t be enough,” said a Silabu resident watching the load being carried off the boat. “Help us, my home has been destroyed.”

Most people are living in make-shift shelters. The rains turn the ground to mud.
A SurfAid team is now based in Silabu and will start distributing emergency items such
as food, shelter and fuel to isolated areas where populations are now huddled in temporary camps on higher ground.

Communities want to know if more powerful quakes will hit as tremors continue throughout each day. Many fear an even larger earthquake is yet to come. A number of seismology experts are warning that the latest earthquakes might be a precursor to a large quake measuring more than 8.5 on the Richter scale.

Given the damage already wrought in the Mentawai Islands by the latest earthquakes, the results of a larger shake are almost unthinkable.
- Jason Brown (SurfAid International E-Prep (Emergency Preparedness) Manager

Earlier report 9.30am Sunday 16 September 2007

Jason Brown (SurfAid E-Prep Manager, who is in Sikakap):

Betumonga

90 families.

14 homes completely destroyed, but 80 per cent of homes uninhabitable.

No deaths or injuries because SurfAid E-Prep had been working there for the past two months and people were prepared - following signposted evacuation routes to higher ground.

The primary school is totally destroyed, including chairs and tables.

Villagers have evacuated and are at a temporary site above Betumonga. They are too scared to return to the few homes that are liveable.

SurfAid staff member, Sudarmi, is fine and well.

Maguiruk

70 families, no deaths or injuries.

No homes have been destroyed.

Only seven families have left the village - 10 per cent of the population.

The church is badly damaged.

The evacuation site is about 20 minutes from the village.

“So we’re starting to get a picture of the random nature of earthquakes, as Maguiruk is not far from Betumonga,” SurfAid E-Prep Manager, Jason Brown, said. Brown is currently at the Sikakap Posko - the Government Command Post.

SAI (SurfAid International) staff member, Antinos, is well and safe.

SurfAid E-Prep Mentawai Field Manager Stephen Ray is still in the field. We are organising for our three South Mentawai staff (Sudarmi, Antinos and Yimmi) to get to Sikakap

SAI Senior Community Facilitator Suryaramli is already in Sikakap. He is from Aceh and has a lot of post-earthquake/tsunami experience.

So we have a team on the ground in Sikakap awaiting SurfAid’s first response boat with emergency supplies, which will arrive Tuesday morning, 18 September, after departing Padang Monday evening, 17 September.

“The first earthquake happened on the evening of Wednesday 12 September and we are just getting news from our field staff - which indicates the isolation of the Mentawai Islands and how difficult it is to work out there,” Jason Brown said.

South Siberut

SurfAid distributed 180 medicated mosquito nets on Sept 14 and 15 to IDP camps set-up in Tuapejet
Mona Lisa, the SAI Community Facilitator for South Siberut, reports from the dusuns (hamlets) of Tiop and Sarausau that all of the villagers have evacuated to higher ground behind their villages and are afraid to return home.

There is still no news from Taileleu, South Siberut - where there are five dusuns including Kirit, Baddan and Maonai.

Seai Lama
On South Pagai, across the strait from Sikakap, there is a small village called Seai Lama.

There are 50 families there.

There is light damage to their homes but they are all outside because they are afraid to go back inside. They have no tarpaulins, tents nor food. They were given 50kg of rice, from the local government, and it’s now finished.

There are cases now of children and adults with diarrhoea and fever.

“The most important thing for us is food as up until now we haven’t eaten,” said one local ibu (woman) who went to Sikakap to report on the situation in her village. “We don’t have fuel for lanterns, we don’t have anything.”

SurfAid was able to deliver four mosquito nets, which were left over in the storeroom in Sikakap from SurfAid’s recent Malaria Free Mentawai distribution program. The government has only eight mosquito nets left in storage.

10am Sunday 16 September.

Report from SurfAid International Mentawai Program Manager, Praem Poobalan, in Tuapejat:

This morning one team of three SAI staff and a doctor and nurse from the Mentawai Health Department in Tuapejat have gone to Pukarakyat (57 homes) taking medication, food supplies, and tarpaulins. About 20 per cent of the homes are destroyed, and all the villagers are now living on the hill and using banana leaves as shelter.

Tomorrow morning (Monday 17 September) a similar emergency action will be taken for Berimanua, which has 60 houses, with 75 per cent destroyed.

Praem has agreed with the Mentawai Health Dept that tomorrow SAI will send doctors and health staff from the puskesmas (health clinic) at South Siberut to our village in Taileleu.

Today SurfAid’s Senior Community Facilitator from the Mentawai Community Health Program will give a report on supplies needed for those five Taileleu dusuns and we will try to send those supplies tomorrow.

Another SAI Senior Community Facilitator will go to Katurai village today - to access the five dusuns there.

To date, 180 medicated mosquito nets (Olysnet) were distributed on Sept 14th and 15th to the IDP camps in Tuapejat.

3pm Sunday 16 September 2007:
Praem Poobalan reports via text message that there is no damage to the Quiksilver SurfAid Community Health Training Centre, which is under construction, however the hamlets of Katiet, Sao and Mongan Bosua are all empty as people have fled to the hills.

You can donate to the Mentawai Earthquake Appeal through the SurfAid website at: www.surfaidinternational.org