Indonesian Quake Victims seek Normalcy

Stephanie Kriner, Staff Writer, DisasterRelief.org, with news reports
More than two weeks after a deadly earthquake left almost 100 people dead, hundreds injured and thousands homeless in the Indonesia province of Bengkulu, residents are trying to bring a sense of normalcy back to their lives. Traffic once again moves along the streets, businesses and schools have opened, and people go about their daily routines. But temblors continue to disrupt life in Bengkulu, on the island of Sumatra, frequently forcing people to drop whatever they're doing and rush into the streets.

Thousands were left homeless after a magnitude-7.9 earthquake on the Richter scale hit the Indonesian province of Bengkulu on June 4. It was followed 11 minutes later by a 6.7-magnitude aftershock. Since then the area has experienced more than 700 other aftershocks. The quake left 90 dead and nearly 3,000 injured, almost 800 of them severely.

The temblors, whose epicenters were out at sea, caused less damage than they could have because they affected only rural areas where most homes and buildings are just one-story high. Officials have yet to tally the actual amount of destruction, but the official Antara news agency put preliminary damage estimates at around $6 million.

Quake survivors still sleep outside their homes, fearful of continuing tremors that could cause the structures to collapse on them. Others sleep outside because the quake damaged their homes. About 25,000 people were left homeless by the quake. Some quake victims have salvaged wood, bricks and glass from the ruins of their houses to rebuild makeshift shelters. Others stand on street corners begging for cash donations.

About 80 percent of homes need rebuilding from scratch in some areas of Bengkulu, according to a United Nations team, which is in the region. Provincial secretary Hasanul Arisin said the government would help people build simple, temporary houses. But he told the BBC, "They are going to have to pay for rebuilding permanent houses themselves. We don't have the money. We need help from overseas."

As quake victims await shelter and other relief supplies, tensions continue to run high over the level of government assistance. Protestors against the government's slow progress in meeting relief supply expectation have set up small roadblocks around towns. The roadblocks have not hampered relief operations by humanitarian organizations. Local officials in Bengkulu insist that aid distribution has picked up.

Meanwhile, relief groups are rallying to help the quake-ridden region recover from the disaster. A Taiwanese search and rescue team continues to search for people buried in the rubble in south Bengkulu province, an area that has been inaccessible until recently. The Indonesian Red Cross has set up first aid posts throughout the devastated area to tend to the injured.

The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC) also is erecting a temporary hospital. The only public hospital in the area was badly damaged and patients are being treated under tents or flimsy squares of orange and blue plastic sheeting, which provide little shelter from the hot midday sun and rain.

The IFRC also is shipping in some 7,000 plastic tarpaulins and 1,000 "family kits" to distribute to quake victims sleeping outdoors. The kits include sleeping mats, kitchen supplies, mediated bath soaps, laundry detergent, candles, matches, toothbrushes, toothpaste and packing sacks. The American Red Cross has contributed $50,000 to help facilitate the procurement, transport and distribution of about 625 kits.

Experts say that people in the devastated Bengkulu province may experience another two weeks of periodic aftershocks. But Indonesian seismologists say that the tremors will become less frequent.

Seismologists said that Bengkulu would not likely experience a major quake for at least another eight years. Indonesia sits on three major tectonic plates that run into each other in the Banda seas in the east, making Bengkulu and other areas prone to frequent seismic activity.

The country experiences a potentially damaging earthquake an average of twice a year. Significant minor temblors occur 50 to 60 times a year, while minor tremors happen about 10 to 30 times a day.

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