Yesterday, (Saturday – August 25, 2018), I arrived in Lombok. The first thing I did was to organize a local quick reaction team (QRT) who will work with us in our relief operation. The team consists of two permanent personnel who will assist us in our daily relief work, administration of goods and services, comprehensive assessment of needs, and coordination with the affected local communities. They are assisted by some volunteers who encouraged to help. The QRT will maintain our coordination from afar since the Camillians are residing in Maumere over a thousand kilometers distance.

Our team is settled in a private house lent to us by a volunteer in the city. This will be our logistical base.

After having organized the team, in the afternoon we began canvassing the items for relief distribution namely food and non-food packs enough for a weeklong supply. We visited also the tents in the city where most of the people found refuge.

People Prefer to Stay in the Tents than at Home

In the city, it is easy to find evacuation centers. Several tents are set up in the open fields – soccer fields, and in public parks and gardens. Some built their tents in front of their houses and along the side roads. During the day, some of them work or stay at home, but in the evening, they go back to their tents. Most of them refrain from staying at their house due to several and strong aftershocks.

Scarcity of Supplies

So far, there have been a lot of help coming from the government, NGO’S, religious groups and organizations. During our canvasing yesterday, food and water are still available in the market, however, the prices are a little bit more expensive than usual the price. There is a huge demand for tents and pails but the supply is very scarce. Most of these items are coming from Java which is about 820 kilometers away from Lombok. We could hardly purchase the amount we need since the stores have limited stocks.

The weather is not so favorable. It is very cloudy and raining.  So many people demand tents. The few rich were able to secure their tents while the poor rely mainly on the generosity of others.

Frequent aftershocks

The situation is quite uncertain due to a series of big aftershocks and even new earthquakes. This is happening every day in various scales and magnitude. There were episodes that it reaches a magnitude of 6,0. The people are traumatized and that’s why they are forced to stay in the tents. Those houses that are completely or partially destroyed are still unmoved due to these tremors.

The need for food and shelter are very high. In the meantime, our team is now conducting their survey of the target population and communities.

Fr. Andi Cyrelus Suparman, MI

Lombok

PHOTOGALLERY