Ministry to Deploy Heavy Equipment to Quake-Hit Lombok

Minister of Public Works and Public Housing Basuki Hadimuljono responds to reporters’ questions after a Plenary Cabinet Meeting, at the State Palace, Jakarta, on Tuesday (7/8). (Photo: Agung/PR)

Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing announced it will deploy heavy construction equipment both from West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) province and other regions to fix infrastructures damaged by the quake that struck Lombok and its surrounding areas on Sunday (5/8) evening.

“The quake is a major one. Areas stretching from Ampenan, Senggigi, Pemenang to Tanjung are affected by the quake. Despite the darkness, the residents left the areas during the  night because it is (near) the coast. Maybe they are afraid of the tsunami,” Minister of Public Works and Public Housing Basuki Hadimuljono said at the State Palace on Tuesday (7/8).

According to him, several bridges must be fixed, aside from limited access to clean water that needs to be repaired as well; yet, Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing started to drill (wells) for water today.

“We make the best use of the remaining wells. We also sent sanitation amenities that arrived in the neighboring Bali this afternoon because the facilities are shipped from Bali and Surabaya,” he said.

Regarding heavy construction equipment, the Minister asserted that the Ministry has already provided it, including excavators already in Lombok.

In addition, Basuki said that he has also communicated with a number of constructors in the province and asked them to lend their excavators. “We use dump trucks and excavators available in the province, including (those owned by) state-owned construction companies PT Hutama Karya, and Nindya Karya which have been constructing dams, airports, and roads and asked them to help us,” Basuki added, adding that all  those heavy construction equipment are expected to reach locations that badly need the  equipment today.

Although some bridges are damaged, he added, there are alternative roads and all the equipment can reach the location.

However, the Minister asserted that the most important aspects for the victims are clean water and sanitation. “People can stand (without water and sanitation) for only one or two days. However, three days without water and sanitation will trigger chaos,” Basuki said.

The Minister went on to say that based on his last visit to Lombok, he noticed that there are many groundwater resources in North Lombok. “North Lombok has many groundwater resources, so it can be found easily by digging a bore-well. I think there are also plenty of water resources. We just have to bring the water to the affected residents,” Basuki said.

Regarding damaged houses, the Minister said that there are 29,000 people living in the coastal areas in North Lombok. “If one household consists of five people, it means there are 4,000-5,000 houses from 29,000 people. If 70 percent of those houses suffer from severe damage, we already have 3,000-4,000 houses. That’s just a rough estimation.

Concerning the plan to provide Rp50 million per house to compensate for the damage, it is still being discussed and calculated whether all houses get the same amount or not, he added.  (DNA/ES) (RAS/EP/Naster)