Crisis center helps families of Kuta victims
Crisis center helps families of Kuta victims
Rita A. Widiadana, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, Bali
A Taiwanese man desperately searched for someone who could give
him information about a compatriot missing in the Oct. 12 bomb
blast in Kuta.
Eventually he bumped into a sympathetic woman.
"Come on sir, this way," said the woman, who escorted him to
the Crisis Center at Sanglah Hospital. The center, manned by
local volunteers, has set up a hotline service. The center was
established after concerned citizens realized the extent of the
lack of facilities to obtain fast information related to the
tragedy.
Mardiana Ika, the volunteer coordinator, after witnessing the
situation after the blast, decided to team up with friends to
help the victims.
"I called my friends at the Bali Hati, the Bali International
Women's Association (BIWA) and other organizations to join hands
and offer emergency help," said Ika, a noted fashion designer.
A few hours after the bombing, Ika and many other volunteers
gathered at the information desk at Sanglah Hospital.
"We thought it would be good to set up a hotline, or an
information center, where relatives of the victims could obtain
information and learn about the latest developments," she said.
After talks with the Sanglah Hospital management, the
volunteers were allocated a small room in the right wing of the
hospital from which to work.
"We communicate with the hospital's Dr. Hansen, who has been
very helpful and open to any assistance from outside," she said.
PT Telkom and Indosat offered their services. The center
received five extra lines from Telkom and two international
connections from Indosat.
Some volunteers lent their computers and fax machines to the
center, and donated paper and stationary.
"It's incredible. Everyone in Bali is eager to offer support
and lend a hand to those affected," she said.
Soon after opening, the center was flooded with phone calls
and thousands of e-mails from around the world.
Four volunteers are ready to help anyone, especially relatives
and friends of victims, with any information the center has.
Other people take care of e-mails from people seeking
information about loved ones.
The Crisis Center has set up several units, including for
registration, missing persons, chaperon services and
documentation.
"We've opened a unit at Ngurah Rai Airport that offers help to
arriving relatives of victims and chaperons them to Sanglah," she
said.
The relatives are expected to facilitate identification of the
dead victims currently being handled by joint forensic teams from
Indonesia and other countries.
"The forensic teams really need the relatives' help," she
said.
Looking devastated and tired, arriving family members
patiently sit in the third-floor hospital waiting room. A number
of female volunteers serve them food and drinks.
Every day, the Crisis Center releases the latest data on
missing persons, the evacuated and the results of body
identification as well as pictures of missing persons.
For local victims, Gentry Amallo, Romo (Catholic priest)
Sandyawan and student volunteers have set up the Indonesian
Crisis Center at the Sanglah Hospital.
"We earlier opened three crisis centers at Udayana University
and have been working to help locals killed or injured in the
blast," Gentry said.
Important contact numbers:
Indonesian Hotline Center: 0361-227911 ext. 170 Fax 0361-257496
Posko Indonesian Center at Udayana University: 0361-235703/4
International Hotline: 62-361-257500
email:missingpersons@balisos.com