Flooding in Morowali, 57 Die

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: The number of dead victims due the flooding and landslides in Morowali Regency, Central Sulawesi, up until yesterday totaled to 57 and the number of people still missing was 23. The victims, said Tabrani, Deputy of the National Coordinating Agency for Handling Emergencies (Bakornas), were from four districts: North Bungku, Soyo Jaya, Mamsalato and Petasia.The Morowali Regency Government has already deployed two bulldozers and two excavators. “They are focused on sending food,” he told Tempo. The teams in the field, said Tabrani, will continue searching for the missing victims over the next 10 to 14 days.According to Friet Abbas, Secretary of the Natural Disaster Management’s Executing Coordination Unit for Central Sulawesi, the rescue team and logistics for the inhabitants who have been evacuated have experienced difficulties in entering the disaster location because the water depth was still four meters. Transportation routes to the flood and landslide spots were cut because some bridges collapsed due to the flooding.Of around 8,000 inhabitants who had been evacuated by yesterday afternoon, only 5,000 still remained in their relatives’ houses, which had not been not hit by the disasters. Some inhabitants had to be accommodated in schools and places of worship.The central government, said Tabrani, sent 10.5 tons of aid yesterday morning. The aid includes four rubber boats, 24 platoon tents and two command tents, five electricity generators, clothes, five tons of mother’s milk secondary meals, one ton of medicines and 2,000 packets of nstant noodles. However, the Hercules plane which carried the aid was forced to land in Banjarmasin due to engine damage.According to Tabrani, it is estimated that the joint team from Bakornas, the Health Department and the Social Affairs Department, led directly by Bakornas Daily Executing Head, Syamsul Maarif, will only be able to reach the disaster location today.PRAMONO | DARLIS | RINI KUSTIANI