Quake damage extensive

LOSSES: MORE THAN 350 000 PEOPLE WERE FORCED TO FLEE THEIR HOMES

Rescue efforts being stepped up to evacuate those who have not been found.

Indonesia’s holiday island of Lombok suffered damage running into more than five trillion rupiah (nearly R5 billion) from last week’s huge earthquake, authorities said yesterday, as the death toll climbed to more than 430.

More than 350 000 people fled their homes after the 6.9-magnitude quake to shelter in government-provided tents or makeshift structures in open fields. Authorities say aid is slow in getting to some of the hardest-hit areas as they are remote.

“The damage and losses are huge,” Sutopo Nugroho, the spokesperson of Indonesia’s National Disaster Mitigation Agency, said in a statement.

“It will take trillions of rupiah ... and a lot of time to heal the lives of the people and the economy of Nusa Tenggara Barat,” he said, referring to the provincial home to Lombok.

Residential homes and public infrastructure suffered the bulk of the damage, he added.

Yesterday, President Joko Widodo visited the island, which lies just east of Bali, the southeast Asian country’s most famous tourist destination, for the second time since a slightly smaller quake on July 29.

He has called for search operations and relief efforts to be stepped up.

“I have ordered that the evacuation of victims who have not yet been found be made a priority,” Widodo said in a statement at the weekend. – Reuters