CBC News
written by Staff
Friday, October 29, 2010
Rescue crews are struggling to reach some of the remote Indonesian islands that were hit by a tsunami that left more than 400 people dead and hundreds missing.
Monday's tsunami was triggered by an earthquake off the coast of Western Sumatra. The wall of water swept through several villages, destroying hundreds of homes and forcing thousands to flee to the hills.
Rough seas, bad weather and a shortage of boats slowed the response to the disaster, officials said.
"We are scrambling, along with other organizations and agencies to get what we can as quickly as possible to the area," said Phillip Charlesworth, a representative of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Indonesia.
He said that even crews that have made it to the islands are struggling to move between areas because of damage to the "very basic" infrastructure in the area.
The World Health Organization said in a report that some government aid workers were delivering aid on foot because cars couldn't travel between the affected communities.
SurfAid International, a relief group that works in the area, has been using a surf charter boat to distribute food, water and shelter supplies, but the team was forced to pause their deliveries Thursday because of bad weather.
The death toll rose to 408 on Friday as officials found more bodies, and 303 people were still missing, said Agus Prayitno, of the West Sumatra provincial disaster management centre.
Rescue teams "believe many, many of the bodies were swept to sea," said Harmensyah, the disaster centre's chief.
At the hospital on Pagai Utara, one of the four main islands in the Mentawai chain, 35-year-old Sarifinus cradled his child as medical staff tended to his broken arm.
The man described how, when the towering wall of water came, he grabbed his two other young sons and ran toward the mountain. The wave tore both from his arms and sucked them away.
Sarifinus and his wife, Martina, who sat staring blankly in a corner of the hospital, found their five-year-old son alive after the waters receded.
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono flew to the Mentawai islands Thursday to visit affected areas and survey the damage.
Volcano erupts again
Meanwhile, a volatile volcano on the main island of Java erupted again early Friday, spewing out clouds of smoke and ash.
The activity appeared to be easing pressure behind a lava dome that has formed in the crater, said Safari Dwiyono, a scientist who has been monitoring Merapi for 15 years.
"If the energy continues to release little by little like this, it reduces the chances of having a bigger, powerful eruption," he said.
At least 33 people have died since Mount Merapi started erupting Tuesday, officials say. No new casualties were reported Friday.
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