Rescue mission unrelenting
NZDF flies air bridge between Balikpapan and Palu for quake and tsunami survivors
The New Zealand Defence Force has delivered more than 18 tonnes of aid supplies to the quakeravaged Indonesian city of Palu, and is continuing to help evacuate survivors.
Palu was devastated by a 7.5-magnitude earthquake and tsunami last week.
The death toll has reached at least 1763 people, with 2632 seriously injured and more than 70,000 homes destroyed, according to the Indonesian National Board for Disaster Management.
A Defence Force C-130 Hercules aircraft and its 14-member detachment crew arrived in Indonesia at midnight on October 4, following meetings between Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Indonesian Government ministers.
The Defence Force is helping fly aid supplies to disaster zones from Balikpapan, a port city in Indonesia’s East Kalimantan province, which is about 380km west of Palu.
Major General Tim Gall, the Commander Joint Forces New Zealand, said the Hercules and the 14-member crew were scheduled to make two aid flights to Palu yesterday.
“Although aid has started to arrive in Palu, the trail of destruction left by the earthquake and tsunami means thousands are in urgent need for shelter, food, water and fuel,” Gall said.
“We have been working with the Indonesian authorities and our international partners to help the thousands of survivors by providing an air bridge between Balikpapan and Palu,” he said. “We are trying to evacuate as many people as possible out of the disaster zones.”
New Zealand aid to Indonesia has now topped $5 million.
The Government has committed $3m to aid agencies, including the Red Cross, and $1.5m for “stand-by funding” for the international community’s relief efforts.
“The scale of the relief effort required following last week’s earthquake and tsunami is becoming increasingly apparent, and there are many people in need of urgent humanitarian assistance,” Peters said in a statement last week.