UN sends supplies to Indonesian quake victims

By Evelyn Leopold

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – The United Nations is sending
aid to victims of the Indonesia earthquake, including medical
goods, tents and water supply equipment, U.N. officials said on
Saturday.

The 6.2 magnitude quake struck at dawn on Saturday when
many were still in bed, killing an estimated 3,000 people. It
was the third major temblor to hit Indonesia in 18 months, the
worst being the quake on December 26, 2004, and the resulting
tsunami that left some 170,000 people dead or missing.

UNICEF, the U.N. Children’s Fund, said it had sent staff to
the earthquake area and was sending thousands of tents,
tarpaulins and lanterns, as well as water supply equipment.

More goods will follow, including medical supplies for the
injured, said Ann Veneman, the agency’s executive director.

“So often in natural disasters children and the elderly
suffer disproportionately because they are least able to react
quickly,” she said.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said he was “deeply
saddened by the loss of life, the hundreds of injuries and
destruction suffered by the people of Indonesia.” He also
offered to mobilize an international response if required.

Jan Egeland, the U.N. undersecretary-general for
humanitarian affairs, said aircraft were on standby in
Indonesia’s Aceh province and other areas, and a disaster
relief adviser was in Yogyakarta conferring with authorities.

Yogyakarta is in the heartland of Indonesia’s main island
of Java near Mount Merapi, a volcano that has been on high
alert for a major eruption this month.

“The earthquake struck so early in the morning it found
most people still inside their homes. We are very concerned
that this may result in increasing numbers of casualties and
injured people,” Egeland said.

The most affected districts are Bantul and Kulonprogo to
the south of Yogyakarta. In Bantul, Egeland said, 70 percent to
80 percent of the houses have completely collapsed, as have
various large buildings, including the public hospital.

He said the Yogyakarta international airport was also
damaged, and flights are being redirected to Surakarta or
Semarang.