World Aid Distributes Relief to 30,000 Indonesia Quake Survivors

|PIC1|More than 30,000 survivors in the quake-hit Bantul district and neighbouring Klaten district of Indonesia are awaiting the imminent arrival of a second wave of World Vision relief aid.

The aid, due to arrive within the next few days, includes 7,000 packages of family kits and hygiene kits to be distributed to 7,000 families, or approximately 30,000 people.

The kits include essential items like pans, dishes, glasses, spoons, buckets, stoves, soap, toothpaste and toothbrushes, torches and kerosene lamps.

An initial delivery of 1,500 packages already arrived in Yogyakarta earlier in the week while the remaining 5,500 packages will be soon be on their way to survivors in the Yogyakarta area from Jakarta and Surabaya.

|TOP|World Vision took part in coordination meetings with the Indonesian government Tuesday and made preparations within the communities for the arrival of the aid, in addition to distributing more tarpaulins and other essential items.

Initial relief aid distributions from the charity went out on Sunday, including hundreds of tarpaulins, blankets, sarongs, stretchers/cots, intravenous solution and gloves.

World Vision's James East in Yogyakarta said, "We expect to be responding for the next six months to a year. These initial distributions are only the first step in a long reconstruction process."

Emergency aid has continued to come into the earthquake hit region in the five days since it hit Saturday morning, killing 6,234 people and displacing some 650,000.

|AD|The country’s government was forced to come out and defend the relief effort amid angry criticism from victims that the international aid was taking too long to get to where it was needed.

Thousands of women and children continue to beg at the roadsides for money from passing motorists while aid agencies say many victims continue to lack medical care and water five days after the disaster.

"Healthcare, shelter, water and sanitation are the main issues," UN spokeswoman Amanda Pitt told AFP.
"We can't do anything for the dead. So we have to focus on the living and make sure they have these sorts of services."

Puji Pujiono, deputy area coordinator for United Nations operations in the quake zone, said many survivors needed emergency care, warning of the threat of infection of those with open wounds.

"As time passes, and at the end of the first week, all of the wounds are coming to the point of being a problem, so there is the threat of infections," Pujiono told AFP.