ReliefWeb

This bulletin is issued for information only, and reflects the current situation and details available at this time. The Indonesian Red Cross – Palang Merah Indonesia (PMI) – has analyzed, with the support of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), that available information points toward significant humanitarian needs. A scaled-up response which will require financial support from the IFRC international disaster response mechanism is envisioned.

The situation

A 6.4 magnitude earthquake has struck off Pidie Jaya District, province of Aceh in Sumatra Island, Indonesia, around 05:00h local time, on Wednesday 7 December 2016, killing at least 90 people and damaging more than 200 houses. According to the US Geological Survey (USGS), the quake was centred 17 kilometres northeast of Pidie Jaya – around 121 km southeast of Banda Aceh – and had a depth of 10 km. Indonesia’s agency for meteorology climatology and geophysics (BMKG) indicated that there was no risk of a tsunami.

The national disaster management agency’s (BNPB) and the regional disaster management agency (BPBD) are coordinating the response and collating information on the earthquake’s impact. Initial reports indicate that hundreds of buildings have collapsed, including houses, public facilities such as the Pidie Jaya Hospital and schools. There has also been damage to main roads, resulting in constraints to accessing some of the affected areas, as well as to electric facilities and towers causing power outages.

The number of causalities is expected to increase as some more people are feared trapped in rubble of collapsed buildings. Some residents in the most affected districts of Pidie and Pidie Jaya are still reluctant to go back indoors for fear of aftershocks. BMKG has reported more than five aftershocks, including a 4.8 magnitude aftershock.

Search, rescue and retrieval efforts are underway, with hundreds of villagers and multi-agency teams, including personnel from Palang Merah Indonesia (PMI), National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS), BNPB, BPBD, Indonesian National Police (POLRI), Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) and local government agencies involved. Assessments as well as delivery of immediate assistance which includes first aid and basic medical services are also being undertaken alongside search, rescue and retrieval efforts.

In the meantime, PMI and the IFRC Country Cluster Support Team (CCST) in Jakarta are coordinating with BNPB and the Ministry of Social Affair (MOSA) to obtain more information on the humanitarian impact caused by the earthquake. Based on initial information from secondary sources as well as from PMI teams on the ground, immediate needs include heavy equipment for excavation and debris clearance, management of injuries, safe water, medical and health services, food and non-food items and emergency shelter.