1 October 2009
CAFOD fears thousands dead from Indonesian earthquake
CAFOD has pledged £100,000 in emergency aid to its partners in Indonesia following the massive earthquake that struck the west coast of Sumatra yesterday. [30 September].
The 7.6 magnitude earthquake has left hundreds dead and thousands more buried under rubble. Half the city of Padang on the west coast of Sumatra has been destroyed and the city of Pariaman 50km inland has been flattened. Hospitals, schools and shopping malls have all been brought down and triggered fires and landslides. Shock waves were felt as far as Singapore and Malaysia. A powerful second tremor shook West Sumatra a few hours later severely hampering rescue efforts. CAFOD partner Caritas Indonesia (Karina) is in Padang.
CAFOD's programme manager for Indonesia, Dini Widiastuti, whose family has survived the earthquake in Padang, said: "We fear the worst for the thousands of people trapped under tonnes of rubble. CAFOD's partner is on the ground working with the survivors and we'll be doing everything possible to alleviate the suffering of those affected."
"The devastation is absolute and from the pictures I've seen the area is unrecognisable to me. CAFOD fears the devastation will be on the same scale, if not worse, than the earthquake in Yogyakarta, in Java, Indonesia in 2006, when over 5,000 people were killed. The rescue operation is paramount. Caritas Indonesia is in Padang assessing the number of casualties and the needs of survivors. Immediate medical attention, food, clean water and shelter are vital.
"There is no electricity and the phone lines are down. There is also the possibility of further tremors, all of which are severely restricting the rescue and aid effort. Two hospitals were affected and are out of action and the airport roof also collapsed, although it is open now and flights in and out are possible."
Fr. Agustinus Mudjihartono is helping Caritas in Padang. He said:"While the situation in Padang for survivors is critical, the situation in Pariaman is much worse. The entire town, which has 80,000 residents, has been destroyed." Pariaman means 'safe haven' in Indonesian.
CAFOD has also pledged £10,000 to support the work of its partners Caritas Australia and Caritas New Zealand following the tsunami in Samoa.
For further information and interviews please contact: Debbie Wainwright on 020 7095 5557 or 07785 950 378 or dwainwright@cafod.org.uk Debbie Wainwright Regional Media Officer CAFOD
0207 095 5557
07785 950378
dwainwright@cafod.org.uk
[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
A medical team carries the body of an earthquake victim to a hospital in Padang, West Sumatra province October 1, 2009. Rescue teams struggled on Thursday to reach scores of people ...
