Dear colleagues,
Below is further news from IDEP on the ground in aid delivery to Aceh and
islands off West coast.
Salam,
Toni
From: IDEP <petra@idepfoundation.org>
Date: Tue, 04 Jan 2005 02:03:36 +0800
7
ACEH AID at IDEP
TSUNAMI DISASTER RELIEF UPDATE
Vol. 1, No. 7 - January 3, 2005
Emergency funding from Australia enabled Aceh Aid at IDEP today to obtain a
200 ton commercial vessel in Padang to deliver disaster relief as soon as
the boat is fully loaded with goods.
Ubud, Bali and Padang, West Sumatra, Indonesia - Field team members sent to
Padang from Ubud, have today chartered a large commercial vessel there to
deliver urgent food, supplies and equipment to hard hit locations along the
west coast of Sumatra. The ship is scheduled to sail as soon as hull is
full, with our team on board. Also slated to sail with this aid mission are
Gung Odeck a community figure from Ubud, Bali, and Rama Surya, a leading
Indonesian photographer from Padang, now resident in Bali who are flying
into Padang together with more volunteer team member first thing in the
morning. A.A.A.I. field team members helped initiate this remarkable
disaster response action, working with the local community, and figures from
the surfing, diving, and local ecotourism industries. Very special thanks
and Kudos to Chris & Christina who have opened up their home / hotel as the
hub for relief aid activities in the area. See :
http://www.sumatransurfariis.com/quakeupdatesnew1230.html for details and
photos.
Synopsis of Telephone Report by Lee Downey, A.A.A.I. Ad Hoc Operations
Coordinator, Padang:
The boat is being loaded now (22:00, 3 January), with food and supplies
including approximately 700 pre-packed, sealed, 50-liter plastic buckets of
supplies, targeted to meet the immediate needs of people on the ground. The
concept of this form of assistance was, ³one bucket, one family.² Each
disaster relief bucket was purchased and packed by volunteers and members of
the local and expatriate community in Padang, to meet a variety of needs in
one, durable, waterproof, and useful package, which is fast and easy to
deploy in the prevailing field conditions in stricken areas. Similar Care
Buckets are arriving from Bali soon (thanks to Ary¹s and the Ubud LKMD)
sent out by air today from Denpasar airport.
Each family bucket contains essential food, health, sanitation, emergency
shelter, and personal care items. These are branded goods which local people
are familiar with, and can put to use immediately without any intermediation
whatsoever. They were purchased in local shops by our volunteers and
supporters in the community, locally, and are therefore labeled in the
Indonesian language.
* One in every five buckets is a ³leader pack,² and its contents include a
one-inch chisel, a hatchet/hammer, a shovel, a handsaw, a crowbar, nails,
and other supplies.
* One in every ten buckets is a ³heavy leader pack,² which also includes a
two-man saw and a sledgehammer.
* The aid vessel is also carrying hundreds of 20 liter jerry cans.
Synopsis of Telephone Report from Sam Schultz, A.A.A.I. Relief Operations
Technician:
The boat is also being loaded with two complete kits for drilling wells, and
all the equipment need to pump-clear and restore existing wells which are
tainted with sea water from the tsunami. These sets of equipment, which
include powered and hand pumps, and piping, are sufficient to complete 40
wells almost immediately. Once the A.A.A.I. volunteers have demonstrated the
process to members of stricken communities in this way, they will be able to
make hundreds of wells themselves, with additional pumps and piping, which
the Field Team is working to obtain, at time of writing. Standard 350 liter
water tanks for storage and treatment are also included in tomorrow¹s
shipment, along with 50 kilos of chlorine. The team is still short of the
certain types of water treatment chemicals, which A.A.A.I.¹s team in Bali is
tonight arranging to deliver from Singapore, as soon as possible, along with
filtering equipment.
When Schultz was asked by Petra Schneider, A.A.A.I. Director in Bali, ³What
are the stumbling blocks at this point between you and the stuff you need?²
his reply was, succinct. ³Money. We need US$10,000 in Singapore, now, for
chemicals and specialized filtering equipment.² A.A.A.I.¹s office in Bali
has volunteers standing by in Singapore to purchase the chlorine and
filters, and accompany the cargo to Padang by air, almost immediately. All
that is missing is the necessary funds, in Singapore. According to Schultz,
while some urgent water supply needs in stricken areas will be met by our
relief teams using wells, in other locations they will use groundwater
sources. Those will need more intensive treatment with chemicals and
filtration. The water obtained from the wells to be cleared, and drilled
may require no additional chemical treatment or filtration.
Further aid deliveries planned
Based on reconnaissance by A.A.A.I. team members two days ago, using surfing
industry boats and private aircraft, they anticipate that the aid shipment
will be able to deliver food and supplies via landing piers in certain
locations, and by tender, where needed. Additional boats, in Padang,
including craft pledged to the effort by industry organizations and
businesses in the surfing community, will be loaded with food and supplies,
and ready to embark within 48 hours, it is estimated. Simeulue Island, the
northernmost large island off the west coast of Sumatra, is their primary
target destination for delivering aid. Other destinations are being
assessed now, for shipments. All boats are in contact by radio, and will
adjust their courses and target landing locations according to advice and
data relayed by team members on shore at an ad hoc aid base camp established
in Padang, which is being operated jointly by various elements of this
extended aid effort by A.A.A.I., the surfing community, and private
individuals. Further destinations depending on how supplies last may
include the Singkel and Tapaktua areas.
When Lee and Sam had finished their telephone report tonight, A.A.A.I.
Director, Petra Schneider told them, ³We are all crying here, we are so
impressed, and so awed, there are no words. You guys are real heros.²
MORE NEWS IN BRIEF
Our most immediate priorities at this moment are delivery of urgently needed
food, supplies, tools, and knowledge to affected areas of Sumatra, through
reliable channels, to reliable people, and supporting the efforts of our
volunteers and partner organizations in the field. Therefore, we are no
longer able to publish these updates on a daily basis during this critical
phase of the disaster relief process.
World Neighbors, an international NGO with a focus on sustainable
development, has elected to channel its funding through IDEP for people in
need in Sumatra.
AID DELIVERED FROM MEDAN IN COOPERATION WITH THE SUMATRAN ORANGUTAN
SOCIETY/ORANGUTAN INFORMATION CENTRE The second convoy of trucks was
organized on the ground by the Orangutan Information Centre (OIC), and
Indonesian Friends of the Earth (WAHLI). It was accompanied by Indonesian
Forestry Police and arrived safely in Banda Aceh. OIC team members on the
convoy expect to stay in the Banda Aceh area for another week. They have
been collecting bodies with the trucks after delivering aid shipments.
Survivors are hitching rides on aid vehicles returning empty from Banda Aceh
to Medan, where they have been seen begging in the streets.
THIRD TRUCK CONVOY READYING TO DEPART MEDAN. The third two-truck convoy of
relief supplies from Medan to Banda Aceh is now being loaded and plans to
depart at about 0400 on January 4th, with an OIC volunteer on each truck to
facilitate optimal delivery of appropriate aid. No ³tent cities² (refugee
camps) have been seen by our teams in Medan.
ACEH AID AND AUSAID COOPERATION Monday, an AusAid cargo plane carrying
emergency supplies was on the point of turning back to Jakarta having failed
to identify a suitable location for landing. Upon learning of the situation,
Lee Downey contacted the plane and it to land at Padang, where 15 tons of
urgently needed supplies were unloaded and transferred to a fleet of private
boats. These boats are now fanning out through the islands south of
Sumatra.
VOLUNTEERS TO SUMATRA TO DATE
On January 4, seven more volunteers are scheduled to depart from Bali to the
established aid delivery and logistics posts in Sumatra.
Christine Foster - Logistics Consultant, Medan (SOS office)
Ade Andreawan - Coordinator, Medan (SOS office
Sylvain Maurice - Trauma Relief Counseling, Padang
Jack McNaught - Finance, Padang
Stefan Wodicka - Medic, Padang
Gung Odeck - Aid Delivery, Padang
Chris Gentry - Medic, Padang
Rama Surya - Photographer, Padang will join the group to help with
documentation.
Our volunteers coordination desk in Ubud is accepting applications for
skilled field volunteers -- doctors, triage specialists, SAR techs,
engineers, sanitation experts, and others for possible postings in the
field in Sumatra. Contact volunteer@idepfoundation.org.
How you can help Aceh Aid at IDEP
Online Donations by Credit Card
(Tax deductible in US, thanks to the cooperation ofTides Foundation)
Click on the donation link at www.idepfoundation.org
<http://www.idepfoundation.org/>
Wire Transfers to Indonesian Bank Account:
Account Name : Yayasan IDEP
ACCOUNT NO : 034.001229576.003
Bank : BNI (Bank Negara Indonesia), Cabang Ubud, Bali
Bank Address : Jl. Raya Ubud, Bali - Indonesia
SWIFT Code : BNINIDJA DPS
Donations can also be made at the IDEP Foundation office, Jalan Hanoman No
44b, Ubud, and other locations in Bali.
The information provided here was accurate to the best of our knowledge at
the time of writing. Conditions change rapidly.
We will provide as much information as we can, as often as we can.
24 HOUR PRESS ENQUIRY LINE
(IN INDONESIA) 08133 8468073
OUTSIDE OF INDONESIA +62 8123 665 669
