Quake victims laid low by disease
Yemris Fointuna, The Jakarta Post, Alor
At least 811 people have been treated for various diseases including diarrhea, malaria and respiratory ailments in Alor, East Nusa Tenggara, raising fears of disease outbreaks in the quake-stricken regency.
Alor health office head Paul Manumpil warned on Saturday that more quake victims were likely to fall ill as thousands of them were still staying in open spaces and mountain slopes.
"The sanitation at makeshift shelters is poor. Diarrhea could easily spread since most of the quake victims are still sleeping in the open air and could be bitten by mosquitoes which could spread malaria," Paul told the media on Saturday morning.
An earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter Scale struck the regency two weeks ago, killing at least 31 people and injuring some 300 others, and destroying over 17,000 buildings.
Local authorities said that the natural disaster caused an estimated Rp 100 billion (US$11.1 million) in damages and also forced over 50,000 people to stay away from their homes, sleeping in unprotected, open areas.
At least 117 people are suffering from respiratory ailments, 79 from malaria, 31 from diarrhea and hundreds of others from various other ailments, as of Saturday.
"I am worried that these three diseases will spread and that would be another disaster for the victims. We need help to contain any spread," Paul said.
The local administration has distributed antibiotics, supplementary food for children and medication for malaria.
"We are still waiting for mosquito nets from the Ministry of Health so we can cover the shelters and prevent further cases of malaria," Paul said.
Three of the nine districts badly affected by the quake were still experiencing a shortage of clean water. Water in many of the wells in the regency have turned brownish and salty with a bad odor, making it almost impossible for the locals to use the water for their daily needs.
The district of Northeast Alor experienced the worst water shortage, forcing local people to walk up to three kilometers to get clean water.
Meanwhile, two quake victims died on Saturday and another one on Friday evening, bringing the death toll to 31.
The latest victims were Alfa Demerince Lowen, three, Obet Mailani, 42, and Karolina Padamai, 45.
The number of fatalities are likely to increase as rescue teams are still trying to reach isolated villages and many victims are still in a critical condition.
Meanwhile, more assistance began pouring into the regency, including from former president Megawati Soekarnoputri, who donated Rp 100 million (US$11,200).
The former president handed over the donation during her one- day visit to the regency on Friday.
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) also donated Rp 1.12 billion. JICA resident representative Kato Keiichi handed over the donation to East Nusa Tenggara Governor Piet A. Tallo on Saturday.