Kostrad rebuilds houses wrecked in Mandala crash

Kostrad rebuilds houses wrecked in Mandala crash

Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan

After losing his house when a Mandala Airlines aircraft slammed
into the Padang Bulan residential area in Medan, crash victim M.
Nasir can manage a smile now that troops have arrived to start
rebuilding the damaged houses.

Forty-six soldiers from the Army Strategic Reserves Command
(Kostrad) arrived from Jakarta to help rebuild seven houses,
including Nasir's, which were destroyed in the tragic accident.

The soldiers were specially assigned to Medan to rebuild the
houses on the orders of Kostrad commander Lt. Gen. Jadi Waluyo.

"We were ordered by the Kostrad commander to rebuild
residents' damaged houses within two months at the latest, all
financed by PT Mandala Airlines," chief of Kostrad's army
engineers detachment, Col. Annas Djoko Setiaji, told The Jakarta
Post on Wednesday at the construction site.

He said that Kostrad soldiers were involved in the
construction of the houses because most of the airlines' shares
were owned by Kostrad.

"PT Mandala Airlines' shares are mostly owned by Kostrad so
it's natural that we help in the construction of the residents'
damaged houses," Annas said, adding that the move would also help
ease the cost.

The aircraft crashed into the densely populated Padang Bulan
residential area this month after it failed at takeoff, leaving
at least 149 dead and many others seriously injured. Some 30
houses were destroyed by fire, with six houses and three kiosks
being completely burnt to the ground.

Annas said all the soldiers deployed to rebuild the houses
were those who had just finished assignment in Aceh following the
tsunami. They arrived in Medan on Sunday night and started work
on Tuesday.

First Corporal Wawan Irawan, 34, said he was happy to be
assigned to Medan, adding that he had just completed an
assignment to build houses for tsunami victims in Aceh.

"There's a certain satisfaction that comes from helping to
rebuild houses of residents who lost their homes in the crash,"
Wawan said.

Nasir praised the Kostrad soldiers for their quick and skilled
work in rebuilding the houses.

"I appreciate the way they work; they're quick and the rebuilt
houses look very strong," said the 46-year-old man, referring to
his house foundation that had be built using rocks.

Nasir, who lost two houses and two kiosks in the crash, hoped
the houses would be completed before the new year. While
construction is going on, he and his family are living in a
makeshift shack behind the house.

"I'm sure the houses will not be finished before the Idul
Fitri celebration (early November), but that's not a problem
because it takes time to build houses," he said.