Rapid Response Payment Request No. 04/2009
Funds Sent To: Yayasan Tanggul Bencana di Indonesia (YTBI)
Amount Sent: US$ 45,995
Date: 18 February 2009
Details of Response
Emergency: Earthquake in Talaud, Sulawesi Utara
Date of Emergency: 12 February 2009
Requesting Member: Yayasan Tanggul Bencana di Indonesia (YTBI), implementing activities in partnership with ACT member Yakkum Emergency Unit (YEU) and their local partner the Synod of Evangelical Churches in Talaud (GERMITA). ACT member Church World Service is also working in coordination with the other ACT members.
DETAILS OF THE EMERGENCY:
Early in the morning of 12 February 2009, an earthquake measuring 7.4 on the Richter scale shook the Talaud Islands located to the north of Manado, the capital city of the North Sulawesi Province. The epicentre of the quake was at a depth of 10 km, 112km south east of Melonguane District.
ACT members immediately mobilised an assessment team which was able to reach the area on February 14th. According to initial field assessments by ACT member Church World Service (CWS), working with YTBI, Pangeran and Panulan villages in Kabaruan are the most affected in terms of level of damage, number of people injured and very limited access to the areas. As at February 17th, CWS reported that 10 persons are heavily injured and 32 persons are slightly injured; and one (1) hospital and four (4) community health centers (Puskesmas) were damaged. Gereja Masehi Injili Talaud (GERMITA) Synod reports that in Pangeran village hundreds of houses and one place of worship were razed to the ground. Inhabitants suffering from minor injuries were treated at the nearest community health centre. Inhabitants of four other coastal villages, namely Sawant, Saru, Rais and Beo villages in the District of Talaud fled their homes to safer areas in the mountains and have been reluctant to return home as the first earthquake was followed by several aftershocks. GERMITA Synod has been co-ordinating with church leaders in the region to collect data and appealing to communities to remain calm.
As of February 17th, CWS reported that most affected people have left the IDPs camp and returned back to their homes. According to the information from Agency for Disaster Management (BPBD) in Talaud District, the earthquake has caused damage to hundreds of houses in the following 13 sub-districts, as detailed below:
Sub-district / Slightly / Medium / Heavy
Melonguane / - / 178 / 158
Melonguane Timur / 18 / 105 / 75
Kalongan / 2 / 34 / 59
Lirung / 5 / - / 44
Salibaba / 16 / 28 / 23
Damau / - / 151 / 218
Kabaruan / 3 / 102 / 262
Beo / 39 / 5 / 37
Beo Utara / 13 / 18 / 27
Beo Selatan / 65 / - / -
Rainis / 12 / 64 / 17
Pulutan / 82 / 24 / 17
Essang Selatan / 23 / 15 / -
Total / 278 / 724 / 937
ACTIONS TO DATE AND EMERGENCY NEEDS:
Food
The Government of Indonesia has also sent emergency food and non-food items to the area while the local authorities have distributed two MT rice to each affected sub-district. However, as of February 17th, ACT members report that this food assistance has not yet reached the village level. This has been confirmed today by YTBI staff in Lirung Village, Salibabu Island, where people have been relying on their own food stocks for the last six days but which are now running very low. This is also the case as reported by the chief of Pangaran Village, Pemberian Bambulu, whose people have been coming to him to request assistance.
ACT members report that the current food stock will only last for 2-3 days because the transport and distribution of relief items is hampered by damaged roads and limited means of transport. In addition, the affected communities are still too afraid of going into their fields to gather the harvest because of landslides around their fields and the occurrence of aftershocks around 5-6 times a day.
Therefore, food security continues to be a serious concern. The assistance proposed in this Rapid Response Request is intended to maintain food security until the distribution line is back to normal and the affected communities are able to resume their daily activities in their fields or farms.
In coordination with GERMITA Synod, YTBI has already begun assisting 90 households in Blude, Pangeran and Panulan with basic food and non-food items to a value of US$ 1,250 from their own rapid response funds. Tents have also been distributed in Lirung, Moronge, Salibabu, Tuluris and Balang.
Shelter
According to ACT members' assessment in the area the most urgently needed items are shelter materials and blankets. The local authorities have also emphasised the most urgent needs as tarpaulins, tents, blankets and mats.
ACT member Church World Service (CWS) have, along with GERMITA, distributed 120 blankets and 20 packages of tarpaulins in Pangeran village, Kabaruan Sub-District. CWS continues to provide assistance using available funds from its own resources and is therefore not requesting funding from the RRF.
Medical and hygiene assistance
According to the head of the Puskesmas (local Public Health Centre) at Kabaruan, Maryati, 300 people have visited the Medical Center in the last 2 days. ISPA, cough, itches, and diarrhea are starting to appear. Today there are 3 cases of Diarrhea. Vitamins and supplementary nutrition support is needed for children and adults who are stressed and lacking sleep due to the fear of continuing tremors.
The head of the Puskesmas in Manganan has reported that people are suffering mostly from Upper Respiratory Infection (URI) as they have been sleeping outside. There are also indications that children are suffering trauma and an increasing number of cases of diarrhoea.
A medical team from the national and provincial level has been in the field since the disaster occurred and immediate needs for medicine have been met by the local health centre or by referring injured to the hospital in Manado (on mainland Sulawesi). The Red Cross Indonesia is also present in the area. However, the local health centre has reported that assistance is still needed for providing follow-up community-based care to patients. This is also in order to prevent outbreaks of disease since the community is still living in tents with poor hygiene in the middle of a rainy season.
Aside from the disease outbreak prevention, the medical assistance also incorporates capacity building of the local health centre in developing disaster preparedness plans and skills to respond in future emergencies.
Rehabilitation
The Provincial Government has allocated IDR 500 million (ca US$ 41,400) for rehabilitation and reconstruction.
PROPOSED EMERGENCY RESPONSE
1. OBJECTIVE(S) OF THE EMERGENCY RESPONSE:
809 earthquake-affected households (3,466 individuals) in Salibabu Island and the villages of Pangeran, Panulan and Bulude, will be able to survive and begin to recover their normal lives, assisted by the provision of life sustaining food and non-food and medical assistance over a four week period.
2. TARGET POPULATIONS:
(For the detailed table, kindly visit the ACT site. Thank you.)
3. PROPOSED ASSISTANCE:
To provide:
- Food (rice, sugar, vegetables canned fish) and drinking water for 3,466 individuals for one week. Sphere standards apply, including for rice.
- Hygiene Kits for 809 households (Contents of a standard kit: soap, tooth paste, shampoo, medium size towel, and pail)
- Sanitary towels for 1,393 women (one package per women)
- Baby Kits for 148 children under 5 years old (biscuits, baby oil, powder and towel)
- Blankets for 992 persons.
- Medical assistance (medicines for follow up care to 300 patients and support to local health post) Type of medicines: wound care and suture materials, medicines for Upper Respiratory Tract Infection (URTI), diarrhoea, skin disease, and post trauma care.
(For the detailed implementation table, kindly visit the ACT site.)
4. IMPLEMENTATION ARRANGEMENTS:
Delivery of assistance is being coordinated by YTBI and YEU staff supporting the implementation and monitoring of relief item distributions by their local implementing partner GERMITA. This is also done to minimize costs, as the travel costs from Jawa Island to Talaud are high. YEU staff will provide medical expertise and carry out health-related assessments.
YTBI staff will be in the location until Germita's staff is ready to continue the emergency assistance activities and able to use the ACT rules/guideline, at least 1 week.
YEU staff will be in the location for maximum one month until after the capacity building (puskesmas disaster plan) activities are done in two puskesmas (one in each island: Salibabu and Kabaruan Island).
5. COORDINATION:
Members of the ACT Indonesia Forum, YTBI, YEU and Church World Service (CWS) are collaborating together in this response. YTBI is the requesting member for this RRF grant, but will be supported in implementation by YEU. CWS has also been working together with YTBI in conducting the initial needs assessment with the local church partner. CWS is responding with its own funds with a complementary focus on provision of tarpaulins and blankets and therefore is not part of this RRF request.
6. COMMUNICATIONS:
Talaud District is an archipelago located to the north of Manado, the capital city of the North Sulawesi Province. It takes a 10-15 hour sea trip from Manado to Talaud. Communication and transportation access is very limited if available at all. Telephone lines are limited even in the capital of the district and sea transportation is often halted by bad weather.
ACT member YEU is currently the focal point in coordinating communications for this response.
7. PLANNED IMPLEMENTATION PERIOD:
This emergency assistance is planned over a period of 8 weeks from 19 February to 19 April 2009.
8. BUDGET
USD45,995
(For the detailed budget, kindly visit the ACT site. Thank you.)
ACTION
The ACT Co-ordinating Office has approved the use of US$ 45,995 towards the budget from its Rapid Response Fund and would be grateful to receive contributions to wholly or partially replenish this payment.
(ends)
ACT is a global alliance of churches and related agencies working to save lives and support communities in emergencies worldwide.
The ACT Coordinating Office is based with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) in Switzerland.
[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
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