The Disaster
An earthquake measuring 7.9 on the Richter
scale hit the province of Bengkulu on the island of Sumatra Sunday night,
June 4, at 23:30 hrs. local time (source US Geological Survey). The epicentre
of the quake was approximately 112 km southwest of the provincial capital
of Bengkulu (pop. 1.2 million).
The Indonesian Meteorological and Geophysics Agency reports that the main quake was followed by 54 aftershocks measuring between 3 and 4 on the Richter scale. There have been no reports so far of a tidal wave (tsunami), which is a common occurrence after such large quakes.
According to unconfirmed reports this morning, the quake has left 58 dead and 500 injured, 250 of them seriously. Some of the injured are being treated in local community health centres. The Indonesian Red Cross (Palang Merah Indonesia - PMI) provincial office in Bengkulu reports that it is providing first aid to the victims as well as making blood supplies available.
The office stated that building have collapsed or been damaged, including the public hospital in Bengkulu town, that telephone lines are down and the airport is closed. It adds that while there have been no official evacuations, people prefer not to stay in their houses for fear of further aftershocks.
A meeting of the Indonesian government's national disaster co-ordinating body, Bakornas, and key aid agencies took place in Jakarta this morning. According to media reports, the government has decided to appeal for international relief assistance including tents, water, food and surgical equipment.
Red Cross/Red Crescent Action
The Indonesian Red Cross office in Bengkulu is assisting the local authorities in a more thorough damage and needs assessment. In view of the steadily rising casualty toll, the International Federation is closely monitoring developments and maintaining contact with the Indonesian Red Cross in anticipation of the need to launch an international appeal for assistance to its members.
The Federation, which has an office in Jakarta is currently putting together a regional team to carry out an immediate assessment. Contact has already been established with Japanese, Singapore and Australian Red Cross National Societies.
Needs
Regional National Societies are being asked to support the assessment mission, and further financial and material assistance will be requested upon receiving detailed feed-back from the field. All Red Cross and Red Crescent partners are encouraged to coordinate their support through the Secretariat based Desk Officer, Antony Spalton (tel: +41 22 7304252, e-mail: spalton@ifrc.org).
Hiroshi Higashiura
Director
Asia & Pacific Department
Peter Rees-Gildea
Director
Operations Funding and Reporting Department