Massive aid operation starts
The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh/Jakarta
The country began on Monday a massive humanitarian operation in the regions hardest hit by a devastating tsunami that swept through Aceh and some parts of North Sumatra as the death toll rose to 5,000, with the figure expected to increase dramatically.
Particularly along the western seaboard of Aceh, which would have taken the brunt of the 9.0 quake and following tsunami. As of 11:30 p.m. Monday, there had been no official reports from the area, which has a population of nearly 1 million.
Following an announcement by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono declaring the calamity a national disaster, relevant agencies dispatched aid to the tsunami-hit areas.
Vice President Jusuf Kalla, who has predicted the toll could surpass 25,000, chairs a natural disaster mitigation team. He stated on Monday that the government would allocate unlimited funds to cover the relief operations.
"We will disburse whatever funds are needed for the rescue operation," Kalla said during a visit to the area affected by the tidal waves in Banda Aceh on Monday.
Susilo, on his stop-over from Papua to Aceh, had ordered three days of mourning earlier in the day for the victims in the catastrophe, and asked citizens and offices to fly the national flag at half-mast. Susilo spent the night in Lhokseumawe on Monday night to observe the relief operations and will go to Banda Aceh on Tuesday.
In Jakarta, the Ministry of Finance announced the government had disbursed Rp 50 billion (US$5.55 million) in an initial relief fund.
The Indonesian Military (TNI) is also taking part in the humanitarian mission, putting on hold its operation to quash the separatist rebels in the province. TNI chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto said he had ordered security authorities in Aceh to use military facilities and personnel for the rescue operation.
"We have ordered our personnel to give priority to relief operations to reduce the number of victims and losses," Endriartono told a media conference at the TNI Headquarters.
Endriartono also called for a temporary cease-fire between military troops and Free Aceh Movement (GAM) separatist rebels so both sides could help humanitarian efforts.
Following the tidal wave that swept through the northern part of Sumatra hours after the quake in the Indian Ocean, military and police personnel engaged in a search and rescue mission for victims, mostly children and senior citizens, who were buried under the ruins and thrown onto tree-tops.
The security personnel were also deployed to stay on guard along the coastline to warn of possible tidal waves due to aftershocks.
TNI has also shipped over 10,000 tons of medicine to Aceh, flown in by five Hercules planes and five helicopters and has dispatched warship KRI Teuku Umar for the relief operation.
Medical support has also been provided by the Ministry of Health which will send 44 doctors, including surgeons, pediatricians and radiologists to Aceh.
Earlier, the ministry had delivered four tons of medicine to treat diarrhea, influenza and skin diseases. It also sent thousands of body bags to the tsunami-hit regions.
The Ministry of Public Works pledged on Monday to send heavy equipment to help rebuild houses leveled by the tidal wave, which in some areas reached 10 meters high.
"The equipment includes three 30-meter-long transportable bridges, water tanks and 60 portable toilets," Public Works Minister Djoko Kirmanto said.
In Banda Aceh, the local administration allocated a three- hectare plot of land for a mass grave, located near Sultan Iskandar Muda Airport.
On Nias Island, which lies close to the quake epicenter, a search and rescue team continued its search for victims who were washed away by the tidal wave. The official death toll from the tsunami on Nias and islands in its vicinity reached 122.
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