JP/5/akros
Villagers urged to be on alert
LUMAJANG, East Java: Volcanologist Atje Purbawinata has urged residents of Wareng and Tegalrejo villages in Lumajang regency, East Java to be on alert for possible mud flows from volcano Mount Semeru.
Purbawinata reminded residents on Saturday that the two villages were located along the path of a nearby river from which the cooled lava would move toward the sea.
He added that the increasing activity of Mount Semeru had created sedimentation of cold lava which result in mudslides.
Purbawinata warned that if heavy rains dislodged the sedimentation, the cold lava would slide through a path that would possibly hit the two villages.
He called on residents in the two villages to be ready to evacuate if necessary. - Antara
Illegal timber seized from sawmills
SEMARANG, Central Java: Police authorities have confiscated dozens of cubic meters of teak from two sawmill companies during a series of raids.
Central Java Police chief Sr. Comr. Noer Ali said on Saturday that police had also seized a truck carrying logs from Tasikmalaya in West Java to Jepara, Central Java.
During the raid, police also confiscated 378 pieces of teak and 33 logs from a sawmill in the district of Ngaliyan, Semarang.
Police officials said they had questioned the owners of the sawmill companies and seized their business permit. Police will soon summon the owners of the logs for investigation.
Noer added that the operation to eradicate an illegal log syndicate would continue and police plan to check intercity trucks. -- Antara
Dengue claims 37 lives in South Sulawesi
MAKASSAR, South Sulawesi: At least 37 people in South Sulawesi died of dengue fever in 2002, while 2,264 others were afflicted, an official said.
Head of South Sulawesi's disease eradication unit Muchlis Manguluang said on Saturday that the dengue epidemic in 2002, however, was not as bad as that of 2001.
He said 74 people of 3,810 people treated for dengue died in 2001.
The decrease in the number of fatalities indicated an improving awareness of the people for the need for sanitation and treatment.
Of the 24 regencies in South Sulawesi, six regencies reported cases of dengue. -- Antara
Remote villages to have road access
BENGKULU: The Bengkulu provincial administration will build a 24-kilometer road and three bridges to help farmers market their commodities.
Head of Bengkulu resettlement and infrastructure office Sarimuda said on Saturday that the project would cost about Rp 12 billion.
Local military personnel and residents are to participate in constructing the road and bridges.
The road connects two remote districts Seginim and Kedurang in South Bengkulu and is expected to boost the economy of those two villages.
The road passes through thousands of hectares of coffee farmland belonging to local people. At present, people use boats to transport their commodities. --Antara
Bali allots Rp 800m to combat AIDS
DENPASAR: The Bali provincial administration has provided Rp 800 million for its AIDS eradication program in Bali in 2003, an official said.
The figure is slightly higher than that of last year which stood at Rp 750 million, Deputy Bali Governor I Gusti Bagus Alit Putra, said here on Saturday.
Some Rp 300 million of the figure will go for a blood screening project which will be carried out by the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI), said Alit who is also chairman of the provincial AIDS Eradication Committee (KPAD).
Meanwhile, a member of KPAD's management board, Tuti Parwati said, the number of people with AIDS in Bali had increased from 233 last December to 251 early this year.
In terms of the number of people with AIDS, Bali was the sixth largest after the provinces of Jakarta, Papua, Riau, West Java and East Java last month.
Most of the patients are migrants from outside Bali including foreigners, she said.
Twenty-one of those with AIDS are foreigners who stay in Bali, she said adding that six of them have already left Bali.
The eradication of AIDS in Bali is an urgent program as the island is Indonesia's foremost resort destination, she said. --Antara