Relief aid for victims of Merapi keeps coming

YOGYAKARTA (JP): Relief aid for the victims of the recent eruption of Mt. Merapi kept flowing in from various parties yesterday.

Visiting Malaysian Minister of Information, Mohammed Rahmat, presented a donation check worth US$200,000 yesterday to the regent of Sleman, whose area is hardest hit by the disaster.

Mohammed, accompanied by Indonesia's Minister of Information Harmoko, also visited eruption survivors who are being treated at three hospitals here, as well as various shelters.

The Salim Group of companies, owned by Indonesia's wealthiest tycoon Sudono Salim, donated Rp 200 million (US$91,000). A check in that amount was handed over to Yogyakarta Governor Sri Paku Alam.

The governor earlier received Rp 408,964 million from 18 well- wishers, while the Sleman regent said he had received Rp 494,642 million, besides the Malaysian aid.

The eruption, which happened on Nov. 22, had killed 52 people up to yesterday. The victims mostly died of serious burn injuries caused by volcanic ash.

Twenty-nine survivors are now being treated at the Dr. Sardjito, Panti Rapih and PKU Muhammadiyah hospitals here.

Plastic surgery on the survivors began at Sardjito hospital yesterday morning, starting with two patients. The two are officers of the provincial office of animal husbandry.

The 15-member surgery team consists of plastic surgeons from Jakarta, Surabaya, Yogyakarta and Japan.

Two of the specialists are from the Japanese Burn Center. They are Dr. Truma Yoshiki and Dr. Kaido Yenki, who are assisted by four paramedics.

The coordinator of the medical treatment of the Merapi survivors, Dr. Bayu Nugroho of Sardjito hospital, said yesterday that other operations will be performed today and in the following weeks.

He said each operation takes three or four hours.

Merapi was still spewing hot clouds eastward yesterday. The clouds spread over the upstream region of the Code River, which runs through this Central Java town.

Officials of the Merapi observation agency could not say how far down the river the clouds had reached because the volcano was covered by fog.

The agency also recorded that Merapi sent down molten lava 34 times yesterday.

Due to the dangerous situation, the agency told search and rescue teams not to go looking for more victims yesterday.

Dozens of people are still missing since the eruption. (har/tis)