Aid trickles in as death toll passes 1,400
PALU, Indonesia — Climbing over reeking piles of sodden food and debris, a crowd on Wednesday searched a warehouse wrecked in Indonesia’s earthquake and tsunami for anything they could salvage: cans of condensed milk, soft drinks, rice, candy and painkillers.
A trickle of emergency aid is only now reaching parts of Sulawesi island, five days after the destructive quake that killed more than 1,400 people, and some increasingly desperate survivors are taking matters into their own hands.
“We came here because we heard there was food,” said Rehanna, a 23-yearold student, wearing a red motorcycle helmet. “We need clean water, rice.”
Elsewhere in the hardhit city of Palu, residents clapped and cheered as they swarmed a truck that was finally delivering aid.
“I’m so happy,” said Heruwanto, clutching a box of instant noodles. The 63-year-old man, who like many Indonesians goes by only one name, added: “I really haven’t eaten for three days.”
Indonesian authorities have been struggling to get relief to survivors who have been left without food, water, fuel and medicine after Friday’s magnitude 7.5 quake and tsunami that smashed homes and businesses, downed communications and made roads impassable on Sulawesi.
The official death toll rose to 1,407 on Wednesday, with thousands injured and more than 70,000 displaced, said national disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho. He said the number of dead would increase, but that rescue crews had reached all affected areas.
The horror was still fresh in the minds of those like furniture maker Khairul Hassan, who was working in a shop near the beach when the ground shook violently.
He ran to a hill and watched as the ocean heaved forward.
“I saw the waves come and sweep out everything — buildings, factories, warehouses and some people who were lost, racing from the waves, some of them women and children,” he said. “Also, warehouse workers who were trapped under goods, all swept by the sea. It’s so tragic. It’s so scary to remember.”
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo visited the disaster zone Wednesday for a second time, saying there’s still work to be done, but that conditions were improving.
“There are lots of things happening related to evacuation, as aid and fuel are also coming in,” he said.
The U.N. estimated that some 200,000 people need assistance, announcing a $15 million allocation to bolster relief efforts.