surfaid 20 Sep 2007No Comments 219 views Print Email

  Green, surf

Medecins Sans Frontieres, Belgium, May Do Joint Operation With SurfAid International
There’s a strong possibility of a joint operation between SurfAid and Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF/Doctors Without Borders) Belgium.

The objectives would be:

1. To deliver shelter, building and hygiene kits and food to villages in the Mentawai Islands.
2. To make a rapid health and situation assessment report of all villages visited.
3. To treat all seriously sick people and report any disease outbreaks.
Staff from MSF will go out to Sikakap and Tuapejat to do initial assessments, leaving from Padang on the surf charter boat, Melaleuca, tomorrow night (Friday 21 September).

The Melaleuca is loaded with basic shelter, building and hygiene kits from the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) and SurfAid, and staff from both organizations. It will head to Sikakap and then the Sinaka region at the southernmost tip of the Mentawai - the worst affected region in the island chain

Medecins Sans Frontieres have a truckload of emergency supplies, including 4,000 blankets and several hundred tarpaulins, en route to Padang from Jakarta. They are currently discussing a joint distribution with SurfAid. If the agreement goes ahead, MSF will also supply some medical staff.

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East Coast of Pagai Utara (North Pagai) Suffers Heavy Damage

SurfAid International Emergency Relief Manager, Tom Plummer reports:
SurfAid assessments of Saumanganyak, on the east coast of Pagai Utara, shows the whole population of 2,500 is displaced and living in camps on higher ground.

Saumanganyak consists of about 11 dusun (hamlets) and there are approximately 780 households.

There is less damage to houses than further south. The damage includes:
156 houses are uninhabitable.
14 churches several schools, government offices and a bridge are damaged.
The Puskesmas (health clinic) is severely damaged.

We have decided to send a vessel to the area and also to Matobek, the village directly south. Emergency supplies will be basic toolkits, hygiene kits and tarpaulins to cover the large amount of displaced population, plus food supplies, particularly rice and tinned sardines.

SurfAid Emergency Preparedness (E-Prep) Mentawai Manager, Stephen Ray, CRS (Catholic Relief Services) and local government agencies have established a formula for a distribution pattern after drops to Silabu and surrounding villages over the past few days.

SurfAid’s chartered emergency ferry D’bora will follow the same pattern on the run down the west coast of Pagai Selatan (South Pagai), which starts tomorrow (Friday 21 September).

Interesting and educated suggestion from Jon Ocean, who reports from the Silabu distribution, is that we supply a number of jacks to villages that have a lot of damaged houses. Villagers in that area are beginning to dismantle their houses so they can rebuild. Jon said this process could take weeks, however with a jack and some simple training they could achieve the same outcome in only one or two days.

I’ve ordered 30 five-ton jacks - depending on supply availability - to send to the south and Jon will trial a house-jacking workshop in one of the villages.

The surf charter boat Freedom 1 is in a holding pattern for departure to Sipora Island to do assessments and a supply drop down the west coast of the island, past Bosua, Katiet and up the east coast back to Tuapejat. It will be a five-day trip as requested by SurfAid’s Mentawai Program Manager, Praem Poobalan.

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The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports yesterday (Wednesday 19 September) that the estimated casualty and damage figures for the West Sumatra province include three dead in the Mentawai Islands (of a total 10 dead in the province from the earthquakes last week) and 99 injured in the islands out of a total injury toll of 124.

There are estimated to be 3,709 severely damaged houses in the Mentawai Islands, with a total of 8,442 severely damaged houses for the province.

In the Bengkulu province further to the south, and closest to the first earthquake, it is estimated there were 15 deaths, 38 injured and 7,905 houses severely damaged.

The District Coordination Unit for the Disaster Management (SATLAK PB) Mentawai Islands reported that in Pagai Utara Selatan sub-district, the worst hit sub-district of the islands, 438 houses are severely damaged and 269 are slightly damaged.

In addition, 133 semi-permanent houses are severely damaged and 131 slightly damaged. Sixty-five religious buildings, 13 schools, 18 offices, and seven parts of roads and bridges are damaged. There are 23,547 IDPs (Internal Displaced People - people from the local area) in the sub-district.

In Sipora sub-district, 582 houses are severely damaged and 596 moderately damaged. The number of IDPs is estimated at 7,000 persons. Lack of radio or telephone communications, and gasoline are hampering efforts to reach the affected communities. The rains also exacerbate the situation.
- Situation Report from OCHA, Wednesday 19 September 2007)

Kirk Willcox
SurfAid International Communications Director
kirk@surfaidinternational.org