Locals people unfazed by Krakatau activity

Locals people unfazed by Krakatau activity

The Jakarta Post, Tanjung Lesung, Anyer

Hariyanto, 34, sailed his boat into the Sunda Strait on Saturday
afternoon as he always does, ignoring warnings that Mount Anak
Krakatau had come back to life with mild earthquakes rattling its
crater in the last few days.

The man, who works at Tanjung Lesung Beach Club, said he did
not feel a thing when a 5.6 Richter scale earthquake occurred
last Friday. He said that such tremors were a common event for
him as well the rest of the locals living in the area.

"We have earthquakes almost every day. There's nothing so
special about yesterday's quake. It didn't prevent me from
offering a Krakatau trip to visitors," said the man who
experienced even bigger quakes in 1992.

Warsa, a former head of Tanjung Jaya village, where the beach
club is located, told The Jakarta Post that he had not heard of
anyone among the 200 families living in the village preparing to
evacuate.

"No one is preparing to leave the village. All we do is
monitor the situation by watching TV and organizing a night
watch, in case sudden changes happen while people are asleep,"
the retired army sergeant said.

Some five kilometers from Tanjung Lesung, people gathered at a
small food stall late at night talking about their opportunities
to earn more income by selling land or catching more fish instead
of discussing plans to evacuate.

According to Habib, an owner of a kiosk at Citeureup, the
people have not received any warnings from the local
administration to start preparing to evacuate.

"Neither subdistrict nor district heads have informed us of
anything. All the information about Anak Krakatau comes from the
TV. Besides, if something bad were about to happen, the elders
here would have already informed us," Habib said.

People at Tanjung Lesung believe that if the volcano is going
to erupt, nature will give signs and the animals will be anxious.

"Like what I experienced in 1992. Before Mount Anak Krakatau
erupted, monkeys and storks were making a lot of noise,"
Hariyanto explained.

At Anyer Beach, about an hour and a half from Tanjung Lesung,
local merchants were thronging the beach and traditional market
on Sunday expecting to sell their goods to hundreds of tourists
visiting the beach. They were disappointed when they found out
that many tourists did not come to the beach because of the
warnings.

Oji, a young man who offers surfboards for rent and banana-
boat rides at the beach, said that he often saw smoke coming out
of the mountain, but that it had never harmed the people of
Anyer.

"We, the people of Banten, are also afraid to die. But volcano
smoke and tremors are everyday experiences here," said the man
that believes that if the mountain erupts, it would attract
foreigners who would come to get a closer look.

A Mount Anak Krakatau observation station located in Pasauran,
Anyer, recorded mild earthquakes occurring every day throughout
the year. In April, 10 to 70 mild quakes occurred, with the
biggest number of earthquakes occurring on April 4, when 78
moderate tremors took place.

"You could die anywhere in this world. Why should I be panic,
when it wouldn't help? Yes, I watch TV and listen to government
warnings. But above everything else, I submit myself to Allah,"
Oji said. (006)