Body recovery a tough job, says Army sergeant

Body recovery a tough job, says Army sergeant

Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Nias

Sergeant Edi Ginting's face turned red from the effort of
shifting a rock from a house in Gunung Sitoli, Nias island, which
collapsed when a 8.7-magnitude earthquake rocked the western
coastal area off Sumatra last week.

He finally managed to lift the rock with the help of
residents.

"Evacuation of quake victims here is extremely difficult as
it's done manually. It's difficult for us to remove the rubble
without equipment," Edi of the Yonif 123 Rajawali Tapanuli
Selatan unit of the Bukit Barisan Military Command, told The
Jakarta Post.

He said rescue work on Nias had been much tougher than in
Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam.

On Nias, he said, to reach most victims, rescuers would have
to work their way into collapsed buildings, while in Aceh, the
bodies had been washed out of buildings by the giant waves.

"In terms of quantity, the tsunami in Aceh was very dramatic
and took a lot of lives, while in Nias, it took less lives. But
in terms of rescue work, it was easier in Aceh than in Nias," Edi
said.

Chief of Yon Zikon 11 platoon from Jakarta, First Lt. Dwi
Joko, said that in Aceh, Indonesian Military (TNI) volunteers had
evacuated hundreds of bodies a day, while in Nias, three a day
was usual.

He said this was not due to TNI officers' failure to come up
to expectations, but to conditions in the field.

"In terms of military personnel numbers involved in evacuation
work in Nias, it's the same as in Aceh. But in Aceh we could do a
faster job. I am doubtful that two weeks is enough time to
evacuate all victims," said Dwi, whose 157 officers engaged in
evacuation work in Nias recently completed their assignment in
Aceh.

Chief of Senapan company's second platoon from Yonif 123
Rajawali Tapanuli Selatan, Lt. B Hutabarat, said rescue work had
been slower due to lack of equipment, though his squad in Nias
comprised 400 officers, the same as when they were assigned to
Aceh.

North Sumatra Governor T. Rizal Nurdin, who is in charge of
emergency work in Nias, said his administration had set a
deadline for the evacuation of all bodies, for two weeks after
the earthquake.

Bukit Barisan Military Commander Maj. Gen. Tri Tamtomo, said
in a recent meeting with the governor that an additional two
weeks would be needed to wrap up the evacuation process.

TNI Commander Gen. Endriartono Sutarto said during his visit
to Nias last week that the TNI had assigned 4,000 personnel to
Nias, mostly those who were on the verge of completing their
assignments in Aceh.

Edi said he wife, who is pregnant, had been counting down the
days until he returned from Aceh. But the new humanitarian
mission in Nias meant he would be delayed.

"We learned about the assignment on board the ship that was
taking us home. As a soldier, I have to obey orders, although my
family is waiting for me."