Children Affected by the Aceh Tamiang Floods Need Trauma Healing
REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA — Children who survived the flash floods in Aceh Tamiang are still facing limited access to nutritious food and psychological distress in the aftermath of the disaster. This situation has created an urgent need for trauma recovery and nutritional support to maintain their health and development.
The government is currently accelerating the post-disaster recovery efforts following the flash floods that occurred on 26 November 2025 in several areas of West Sumatra, North Sumatra, and Aceh, including the construction of temporary housing and the repair of road infrastructure. However, the affected communities still need support in the form of nutritious food and drinks, as well as trauma healing, especially for children.
A visit by volunteers from the Abhipraya Insan Cendekia Indonesia (YAICI) Foundation to Desa Serba and Desa Pematang Durian from 3–6 February revealed that the available food mainly consists of instant food, which is not ideal for children’s needs. Access to clean drinking water is also still limited in both villages.
YAICI Secretary-General Satria Yudistira said that the visit was conducted to help children who experienced trauma as a result of the disaster. YAICI believes that the disaster has not only triggered a humanitarian crisis but also has the potential to cause long-term health risks for children.
The YAICI team travelled through difficult conditions to reach the two villages due to damaged roads and the considerable distance from Kualasimpang. “We hope that our presence in these two villages can help the children here, especially by reducing the trauma they experienced after the disaster,” he said in a press release on Wednesday (25/2/2026).
During their time in the area, YAICI held trauma healing activities through various interactive games. “We hope that by playing with the children in these two villages, they can forget what they have experienced or at least escape for a while,” he said.
The activity received a positive response from the children, who seemed enthusiastic about participating in the games. “This event made us realize that what children in disaster areas need is not just food, infrastructure, and money, as we have known all along. But it turns out that something has been overlooked; these children need us to play with them,” he said.
In addition to trauma healing, YAICI also provided milk formula to help meet the nutritional needs of the children, with support from the Bossmama community. This assistance was welcomed by parents, who were previously accustomed to providing milk formula because most of them work in palm oil plantations.
YAICI also distributed aid packages for toddlers, children, and adults through the local village heads. “At that time, I was very touched when one of the village elders expressed his hope that no one would leave them during this time of grief,” he said.