QUAKE HORROR FAR FROM OVER
Victims open up about how the tragedy has changed their lives forever
DETAILS of the extent of the destruction wreaked by the Sulawesi earthquake are coming to light, with victims opening up about the tragedy and how it has changed their lives forever.
The death toll has risen to more than 1,600 people but for survivors, the horror has not ended yet.
The New Straits Times Press spoke to Emran Musa, 45, who recounted the tragedy which befell his family.
His wife, Nyonya Tajriani, 24, had to have her left hand amputated after it was crushed when the walls of her home caved in during the massive earthquake on Sept 28.
He said his wife was in the bathroom when their house began shaking.
“In her panic, she tried to run but slipped and fell in front of the toilet. That was when the walls and roof caved in.
“She raised her left arm to shield herself. The debris crushed her hand,” he said at the Undata Palu Hospital here.
The hospital has been transformed into a field hospital for quake victims.
It has been unable to cope with the influx of patients, which left the authorities with no choice but to place around 100 patients outside the building.
The massive number of dea bodies also means that the mortuary is working beyond its capacity and can no longer store remains.
Emran said doctors had to amputate his wife’s left hand in order to save her arm. She also sustained multiple broken bones in both her legs.
“Although I’m grateful that she survived, I’m sad that she was so badly injured. She is trying to cope with what has happened to her,” said Emran, who was by her bedside.
Reporters also spoke to a woman whose 8-year-old son was injured in the quake.
Wahiyu Asri, 38, was doing her best to comfort the boy, who was sobbing in pain. The boy lost his left hand and two fingers on his right hand when the ceiling of their house in Sigi collapsed on him.
“He hasn’t stopped crying. I’ve done my best to comfort him but Rendy (her son) keeps crying. He’s always asking about what will happen to his left hand, which was severed,” she said.
“We were fortunate that he was saved in time and rushed to the hospital. But now, due to lack of beds, he’s been placed outside in the parking lot.
“It’s hot here and both adults and children are sharing the same tent,” she said.
Latest figures place the death toll at 1,649 and 2,549 were reported as critically injured.
The large number of victims, coupled with lack of hospital beds, has forced the authorities to fly patients to Makassar and Balik Papan, Kalimantan, via military aircraft.
PALU: More bodies were unearthed from the earthquake-tsunami-ravaged Indonesian city of Palu on Saturday, as authorities move closer to declaring them mass graves.
More than 82,000 military and civilian personnel, as well as volunteers, have descended on the devastated city, where relief groups say clean water and medical supplies are in short supply.
After days of delays, international aid has slowly begun trickling into the disaster zone where the United Nations says almost 200,000 people need humanitarian assistance.
Vast numbers of decomposing bodies could still be buried beneath this once-thriving neighbourhood, the National Search and Rescue Agency said.
“There are no survivors here. We just find bodies, every day,” said army sergeant Syafaruddin.
Security minister Wiranto said the government had been discussing with local leaders and religious figures as to when the worst-hit areas would be declared mass graves, and left untouched.
“We have to make a decision as to when the search for the dead will end. Then, we later must decide when the area will be designated a mass grave,” he said.
Concerns are growing that decomposing bodies could turn into a serious health hazard.
“Most of the bodies we have found are not intact, and that poses a danger for the rescuers. We have to be very careful to avoid contamination,” Yusuf Latif, a spokesman for Indonesia’s search and rescue agency, told AFP from Palu.
“We have vaccinated our teams, but we need to be extra cautious.”