Mass burials in East Nusa Tenggara as death toll rises
Mass burials in East Nusa Tenggara as death toll rises
MAUMERE, East Nusa Tenggara (JP): Breaking with local custom,
East Nusa Tenggara authorities were forced on Friday to conduct a
mass burial as the death toll due to floods in the region rose to
148.
Reports received from the affected districts of Central Malaka
and West Malaka in Belu regency said the authorities had held a
mass burial for 81 people.
"Mass burials are actually against local tradition, but we are
facing an emergency situation," provincial government
spokesperson Nani Kosapilawan said on Friday.
The number of dead could easily multiply in the coming days as
some 125 people are still classified as missing. Flooding and
heavy rains have been reported since Tuesday.
Assistance is coming in from the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which has sent search and
rescue teams to the low-lying Belu regency.
The UN Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) has
also deployed three helicopters to join search and rescue
efforts.
Nani admitted that the provincial administration's facilities
were extremely limited and that it only had a single rubber boat
to help in the search operations.
Nani said the two international bodies were fully cooperating
with the local administration in searching for missing victims
and evacuating residents in the two worst hit districts.
She further pointed out that another major impediment
hampering the search and rescue teams was the fact that Banunaen
Bridge, the only bridge connecting Central Malaka and West Malaka
districts, had been swept away in the flood.
She said flood waters had now risen to up to two meters.
Nani said about 16,000 of the 100,000 people living in the two
districts, located near the border with East Timor, were East
Timorese refugees.
"Most of the dead and missing victims are likely to be East
Timorese refugees," Nani speculated, adding that of those
registered as missing, 23 were from West Malaka and 102 from
Central Malaka.
She added that further assistance from the Indonesian Military
(TNI) was on the way, with 15 doctors being dispatched.
A UNHCR spokesman in the East Nusa Tenggara provincial capital
of Kupang, Jake Morland, also said the number of deaths "may go
much higher as we get a clearer picture of what's going on."
"It's still raining here," he added.
Much of the region has now been cut off after roads and
bridges collapsed after three days of continuous rain.
He said that up to 20,000 people had been seriously affected
by the flooding and "are on the move".
President Abdurrahman Wahid expressed his deep sorrow over the
tragedy and promised to build better irrigation systems,
including dams, to help control floods during the rainy season in
the regency.
"I have ordered the minister of home affairs to prepare the
irrigation construction," the President said before leaving
Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, after a brief visit to the province.
(yac/prb)
MAUMERE, East Nusa Tenggara (JP): Breaking with local custom,
East Nusa Tenggara authorities were forced on Friday to conduct a
mass burial as the death toll due to floods in the region rose to
148.
Reports received from the affected districts of Central Malaka
and West Malaka in Belu regency said the authorities had held a
mass burial for 81 people.
"Mass burials are actually against local tradition, but we are
facing an emergency situation," provincial government
spokesperson Nani Kosapilawan said on Friday.
The number of dead could easily multiply in the coming days as
some 125 people are still classified as missing. Flooding and
heavy rains have been reported since Tuesday.
Assistance is coming in from the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which has sent search and
rescue teams to the low-lying Belu regency.
The UN Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) has
also deployed three helicopters to join search and rescue
efforts.
Nani admitted that the provincial administration's facilities
were extremely limited and that it only had a single rubber boat
to help in the search operations.
Nani said the two international bodies were fully cooperating
with the local administration in searching for missing victims
and evacuating residents in the two worst hit districts.
She further pointed out that another major impediment
hampering the search and rescue teams was the fact that Banunaen
Bridge, the only bridge connecting Central Malaka and West Malaka
districts, had been swept away in the flood.
She said flood waters had now risen to up to two meters.
Nani said about 16,000 of the 100,000 people living in the two
districts, located near the border with East Timor, were East
Timorese refugees.
"Most of the dead and missing victims are likely to be East
Timorese refugees," Nani speculated, adding that of those
registered as missing, 23 were from West Malaka and 102 from
Central Malaka.
She added that further assistance from the Indonesian Military
(TNI) was on the way, with 15 doctors being dispatched.
A UNHCR spokesman in the East Nusa Tenggara provincial capital
of Kupang, Jake Morland, also said the number of deaths "may go
much higher as we get a clearer picture of what's going on."
"It's still raining here," he added.
Much of the region has now been cut off after roads and
bridges collapsed after three days of continuous rain.
He said that up to 20,000 people had been seriously affected
by the flooding and "are on the move".
President Abdurrahman Wahid expressed his deep sorrow over the
tragedy and promised to build better irrigation systems,
including dams, to help control floods during the rainy season in
the regency.
"I have ordered the minister of home affairs to prepare the
irrigation construction," the President said before leaving
Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, after a brief visit to the province.
(yac/prb)