Indonesia provides emergency assistance to earthquake-hit Vanuatu

Jakarta, Dec 28 (IANS) The Indonesian government has provided emergency assistance to quake-stricken Vanuatu to help the nation carry out emergency relief efforts following the 7.3-magnitude quake on December 17 that killed a dozen people and wounded hundreds of others.

A plane carrying a medical team and 50.5 tonnes of logistics and food departed from Halim Perdanakusuma Air Force base in East Jakarta on Friday afternoon.

Health Minister Budi Sadikin expressed his expectation that the medical team would begin aiding the victims of the catastrophe upon their arrival in the country. According to him, the team is scheduled to conduct the humanitarian mission for 14 days, Xinhua news agency reported.

Earlier on December 24, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) also announced that it had provided $5 million in contingent disaster financing to support emergency relief efforts in Vanuatu following a 7.3-magnitude earthquake that struck the capital, Port Vila, on December 17.

The grant had come from the fifth phase of the Pacific Disaster Resilience Programme, which had also supported progress in strengthening the country’s capacity to manage and reduce disaster risks.

The program had been financed by a $20 million concessional loan from the ADB’s ordinary capital resources and a $21 million grant from the Asian Development Fund.

The situation in Vanuatu remained concerning after the massive earthquake, and the government had requested international assistance on December 18.

The government of Vanuatu had declared a state of emergency for seven days following the 7.3-magnitude earthquake. At least 14 people had been confirmed dead, with more than 200 injured. Authorities had anticipated that the toll would rise.

To complement the national response, the government had requested international assistance, as Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN chief, had told reporters.

According to local authorities, the damage inflicted by the quake had been extensive, including to hospitals, residential and public buildings, roads, water reservoirs, and gas pipes. Villages near Efate had also experienced landslides. Communications in many areas had been cut off.

Operations at Port Vila International Airport in the capital city had also experienced delays due to damage to its terminal building and road network, although the runway had been functioning, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported. The airport had remained closed to all commercial services. However, on December 22, Port Vila International Airport had reopened to commercial airline operations.

Access to the seaport had also been disrupted by a landslide, limiting the transport of essential supplies and personnel.

The United Nations and its partners had been mobilising resources to respond, OCHA had said. It had been deploying response teams, including a UN disaster assessment and coordination team, in the quake-hit region.

UN humanitarians had said that immediate needs included medical supplies and repairs to medical structures, mobile medical teams, and search and rescue teams with heavy machinery for clearing, as well as safe drinking water.

–IANS

int/jk/sd