Prime Minister of Malaysia Mahathir bin Mohamad
The Malaysian prime minister on Thursday called on the neighboring countries to offer disaster-stricken Indonesia a helping hand.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries should pioneer the aid to Indonesia -- which was hit by a deadly earthquake and tsunami in Sulawesi Island, Malaysia’s state news agency Bernama reported Mahathir Mohamad as saying.
The premier addressed the 6th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Disaster Management in Malaysia’s Putrajaya city.
Aerial footage shows the devastation left behind by a deadly tsunami and earthquake in Petobo Village, Indonesia.
Drone footage shows devastation in quake hit Petobo Village
He said that Palu, Donggala and Sigi areas in the island suffered massive destruction, and over a thousand people died, while more than 60,000 homes were damaged and 60,000 people were displaced.
“While such a tragedy is heart-wrenching, as neighbors, we do not want to be sitting and watching from the sidelines.
“But to attempt to help without proper coordination and strategic planning will result in causing a chaotic situation more chaotic. Instead of helping, we may end up troubling the other rescuers,” Mahathir said, as quoted by Bernama.
“It is obvious that under such circumstances, ACDM [ASEAN Committee on Disaster Management] has a major role to play,” he added.
The confirmed death toll from an earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia's Sulawesi Island has risen to 1,407, the disaster mitigation agency said on Wednesday.The 7.5 magnitude quake and deadly tsunami waves it triggered last Friday heavily injured over 2,500 people.It is feared that the death toll will continue to surge, as most of the confirmed dead have come from Palu, a small city 1,500 km (930 miles) northeast of Jakarta, and losses in remote areas largely cut off since Friday are yet to be accounted for.Victims of the disaster are having difficulty obtaining necessities such as food and drinking water. Search and rescue operations in collapsed buildings throughout the region continue.The quake brought down hotels, shopping malls and thousands of houses in Palu, while tsunami waves as high as six meters (20 feet) battered its beachfront shortly afterwards.UN pledges aid for Indonesian quake, tsunami victimsUN pledges aidThe UN said Tuesday that it is allocating $15 million from its Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to assist the victims of the devastating natural disaster.“Thousands of people are unable to return to their damaged or destroyed homes and aftershocks continue. While the government and first responders are working tirelessly to deliver life-saving aid, the needs remain vast,” a statement released by the UN said.The UN has estimated that 66,000 homes and vital infrastructure were damaged, including roads and bridges.Volcano erupts on Indonesia’s Sulawesi IslandDifficulty in accessing disaster victimsCentral Sulawesi Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) head Bartholomeus Tandigala said that search and rescue activities had to be paused at nightfall, and that disruptions were breaking out because locals had nearly no access to drinking water.“Lack of electricity is negatively affecting search and rescue activities, access and communication,” said Tandigala.Turkish aid group extends helping handThe Istanbul-based Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) is continuing its aid efforts in the region. The group said on Monday that they had delivered food and shelter provisions to 2,000 victims.The foundation had sent a five-person team as soon as the devastating earthquake struck and launched a fundraising campaign for the quake victims.Indonesia's Widodo makes second visit to quake city as aid effort gears upRampant lootingThere are reports of looting incidents in the quake-hit cities of Palu and Dongala.Police have done little to stop outbreaks of looting. The government has played down the problem, saying that victims could take essentials and shops would be compensated.“Home and shop owners choose to stay with their properties even if they have no food or water in case looting occurs,” BPBD head Tandigala said.Trump offers condolences over deadly Indonesian quake
Bodies pile up as Indonesia suffers from devastating effects of quake, tsunami
Indonesian President Joko Widodo made a second visit to earthquake-devastated Sulawesi island on Wednesday, saying efforts to help survivors were gearing up and he was keen to see economic activity resume.Five days after disaster struck, time is running out for anyone trapped under collapsed buildings, while aid workers warned of increasing desperation in hard-hit outlying areas that have yet to get any help at all.The official death toll from the 7.5 magnitude quake that struck the west coast of Sulawesi last Friday stood at 1,234, many killed by tsunami waves triggered by the quake.But officials fear the toll could soar, as most of the confirmed dead have come from Palu, a small city 1,500 km (930 miles) northeast of Jakarta, and losses in remote areas largely cut off since Friday have yet to be determined.UN pledges aid for Indonesian quake, tsunami victimsUnderlining a growing sense of urgency, Widodo made his second visit to the disaster zone, putting on an orange hard hat to talk to rescue workers at a collapsed Palu hotel."What I've observed after returning now is heavy equipment has arrived, logistics have started to arrive although it's not at maximum yet, fuel has partly arrived,” Widodo told reporters.Asked about efforts to restore electricity, he said:"This is all a process. Most importantly, I've asked the governor to reopen economic centres so people start to return to daily activities, while the evacuation process continues, and later rehabilitation and reconstruction."Trump offers condolences over deadly Indonesian quakeWidodo, who will seek re-election next year, called on Tuesday for reinforcements in the search for victims, saying everyone had to be found. He repeated that on Wednesday, after inspecting what he called an "evacuation" effort at the Hotel Roa Roa, where he said some 30 people lay buried in the ruins."We'll continue this process so all the victims can be retrieved,” he said.At least seven cargo planes arrived at Palu airport earlier on Wednesday carrying tonnes of aid, some bedecked in the red and white national colours and stamped with the presidential office seal declaring: "Assistance from the President of Republic of Indonesia”.Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency, said late on Tuesday rescuers had reached all four of the badly affected districts, which together have a population of 1.4 million, but he declined to give an estimate of casualties."We hope the death toll does not rise," he said. "We're continuing rescue operations but right now the team is racing against time."Video: Rescuers extract man from rubble in Indonesia's Sulawesi'GOVERNMENT MISSING'The quake brought down hotels, shopping malls and thousands of houses in Palu, while tsunami waves as high as six metres (20 feet) scoured its beachfront shortly afterwards.About 1,700 houses in one neighbourhood alone were swallowed up by ground liquefaction, which happens when soil shaken by an earthquake behaves like a liquid, and hundreds of people are believed to have perished, the disaster agency said.Adding to Sulawesi's woes, the Soputan volcano in the north of the island, about 600 km (375 miles) northeast of Palu, erupted early on Wednesday but there were no reports of any casualties or damage. Ash was not expected to disrupt flights.But concern is growing about conditions in remote areas, many of which have been cut off by destroyed road, landslides and downed bridges.Aid worker Lian Gogali said the situation in badly hit Donggala district was very difficult."Everyone is desperate for food and water. There's no food, water, or gasoline. The government is missing," she said.She said her aid group had been sending in a trickle of rations into the district of some 300,000 people by motorbike.The national disaster agency has said tents, food, water and sanitation facilities for more than 60,000 displaced people are in short supply.Police have done little to stop outbreaks of looting. The government has played down the problem, saying victims could take essentials and shops would be compensated.The government has said it would accept offers of international aid, after shunning outside help this year when two major earthquakes struck Lombok island, south of Sulawesi.U.S. President Donald Trump extended condolences in a phone call with Widodo, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told reporters in Washington. The United States has provided initial funding, deployed government disaster experts and was working to determine what other help can be given, she said.Sitting on the seismically active Pacific Ring of Fire, Indonesia is one of the world's most vulnerable countries to quakes and tsunamis. A quake in 2004 triggered a tsunami across the Indian Ocean that killed 226,000 people in 13 countries, including more than 120,000 in Indonesia.
Indonesia's Widodo makes second visit to quake city as aid effort gears up
Mahathir went on to say: “According to the global data for the period of 2000 to 2017, the Asia Pacific Region constituted 45 percent of global disasters, 60 percent of global disaster mortalities and 85 percent of global disaster-affected people.”
“Together, I am sure we can help our neighbor to ease her burden,” he asserted.
The death toll from the 7.4-magnitude earthquake and tsunami has risen to 1,424, according to the country’s Disaster Management Agency (BNPB).
The disaster in Central Sulawesi could be Indonesia’s second-largest tragedy after the 2004 Aceh tsunami that killed more than 170,000 people.