Indonesia Earthquake Appeal
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Click here to donate to the Indonesia
Earthquake appeal.
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A Caritas
volunteer hands out tarpaulins which are being used as temporary
shelters from the tropical rains, Palak Juha.
James Alcock/ Caritas
Australia
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A man walks on top of crushed cars in
Padang on Indonesia's Sumatra island 1 October 2009.
REUTERS/Crack Palinggi
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A devastating magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck off the coast of
Padang, a city of more than 900,000 people on the island of Sumatra on
Wednesday 30 September. The death toll is already over 1,100 people but
it is expected to now increase rapidly as the chances of finding
survivors buried under the rubble one week after the quake is bleak.
Local Caritas agency Karina has an assessment team from
Jakarta working in Padang and neighbouring villages. Initial
assessments indicate that the needs of villages are much greater than in
the city of Padang. Many villages are totally destroyed and relief
efforts are hampered by no available electricity, lack of mobile network
coverage and damaged infrastructure such as roads and bridges. Parmian,
a town of 80,000 closest to the epicentre of the earthquake is totally
destroyed.
How we're helping
Caritas agencies from around the world have already pledged
AUD$4.1 million to disasters in Asia and the Pacific this week. Teams
from the local Caritas in Padang helped pull survivors and the dead from
the rubble in the hours and days after the quake. Temporary shelter is a
high priority and Caritas has already delivered temporary shelter to
many small and hard-to-access villages neighbouring Padang.
More than 70% of homes were destroyed in Lurah Ampalo, a village three
hours from Padang. Caritas delivered temporary shelter to 1,600 families
in the village where locals report they weren't even aware of the
international efforts to assist them.
The Caritas Disaster Response Team will continue their current response
by visiting the villages surrounding Padang and addressing
immediate needs such as shelter, food, access to clean water and medical
help. This initial allocation will ultimately assist 5,500 families
(approximately 27,500 people) when the distribution is complete. Once
immediate needs are met we will focus on the long-term rehabilitation of
the affected population.
You can help
You can help our neighbours by giving generously to the
Indonesia Earthquake Appeal, donate online today or phone 1800 024 413 (toll
free). Or if you would like to donate to our broader
appeal to help all the communities affected by the surge in natural
disasters then donate to the Communities in Crisis: Asia Pacific
Appeal.
Communities in Crisis: Asia Pacific appeal
In addition to the earthquake in Indonesia, Caritas Australia
is responding to Typhoon Ketsana across South East Asia severely
affecting the Philippines, Vietnam and Cambodia, and tsunami in the
Pacific. People across our region are in desperate need. Caritas
Australia is providing immediate assistance to all these crises with
people on the ground delivering life-saving assistance. You can help
these people in our neighbourhood by giving generously to the Caritas
Australia Communities in Crisis — Asia Pacific
Appeal, donate online now, or click
here to learn more.
Latest news
Media Releases
7
October 2009, Caritas delivers aid to forgotten villages in
Sumatra
3
October 2009, Sumatra Earthquake: Situation desperate outside Padang
city
1
October 2009, Caritas sends relief teams to Sumatra
News from the field — Tim
O'Connor, Caritas Australia Communications Officer
9
October 2009, Sumatran Earthquake: the ultimate show of survival and
solidarity
6
October 2009, Indonesia Earthquake: The will to live
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