WEST PAPUA'S WASIOR TOWN CRIPPLED BY FLOODS

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Oct 6 (ANTARA) - The district town of Wasior in West Papua province has over the past three-days been crippled by floods that caused at least 64 deaths and 451 people to go missing.           Besides, a total of 91 people sustained serious injuries, 68 minor ones and about 3,000 others were evacuated.          "Land and air transportation was also paralyzed  as roads were cut off and Wasior's airstrip was inundated. The area can now be reached only by sea," Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Agung Laksono, said.          In order to help the victims, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ordered central and regional government officials to handle the flash floods in Wasior, Telok Wondama district, West Papua province, in a coordinated way.          "The president asked the coordinating minister for people's welfare and the minister/state secretary to coordinate with West Papua government so that the victims could be handled well, including those at the evacuation centers," Presidential Spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha said here on Wednesday.          He said that the floods in Wasior had claimed more than 64 hundreds were still missing victims. "This must be given serious attention and the central government will give priorities to saving lives and evacuating the victims well," he sad.          Pasha said that the president also expressed condolences to the victims and their families.          "In connection with the floods, the president asked the head of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), Syamsul Maarif to inspect the location and take note of the latest developments in West Papua," he said.          The BNPB has sent 60 units of platoon tents, 80 units of family tents, 200 rolling tents, 60 units emergency beds, 500 packages of clothes, 100 pieces of mats, 2,250 ready for consumption foods and 2,250 kg medicines.          Thirty-one houses had been heavily damaged and health facilities, schools, roads, bridges and a hotel had also been damaged.          "The Wasior airstrip is still inundated and cannot be used for landing and therefore my flight there had been postponed," he said.          President Yudhoyono has also sent logistical supplies worth Rp2 billion to reduce the burden of flood victims in Wasior, West Papua.  "The President has sent aids for the flood victims," Agung Laksono said.          Agung said the President was very concerned over the disaster and therefore had sent the aid.   The aid consists of clothes, blankets, medicines, food, mats, milk for under five children and others.          "If all goes well the aid is expected to arrive on the scene on Thursday," he said.          Agung said the President had asked all the ministries concerned to monitor the development there and conduct an emergency response.          "I have been asked to keep coordinating the ministries concerned with the problem. The President said all ministries concerned had to pay special attention to the victims and evacuees," he said.          As the area could only be reached by sea,  the Indonesian Navy has sent its KRI Kalakay-818 to West Papua to help flood victims in Wasior.          The warship from the Eastern Fleet arrived at Wasior on Wednesday at around 2.30pm local time, Eastern Fleet Command spokesman Lt Col Yayan Sugiana said here on Wednesday.           "The ship left Manokwari for Wasior on Tuesday," he said. He said the ship carried 58 people including 13 health workers as well as heavy equipment to clean up debris.          He said the medical team immediately worked to help victims upon arrival.          KRI Kalakay had been able to evacuate 53 survivors including 16 children.          "Of the 53 survivors helped one was seriously wounded and seven others lightly injured," he said.          He said the ship would operate there for the next 14 days.          According to data from the National Disaster Control Agency 64 people had been killed in the flash floods that happened in the disrict following heavy rains recently.          The government is planning to send a floating hospital, KRI Dr Soeharso-990 warship to Wasior's Wondama Bay. "The government will send 'KRI Dr Soeharso' which is expected to arrive two to three days ahead ," Agung Laksono said.          KRI Dr Soeharto is expected to help provide health service to the victims. "The district town is still the crippled conditions and could not be reached through land and air. Therefore it is expected that floating ship is the correct means to provide the victims with health services through the sea lane," he said.           Heavy rains have fallen in the region from Sunday to Monday. Those who died in the disaster were likely because they had been sunk after being carried away by the flood that also carried with it logs and rocks from a lake in the mountain      Lecturer at Jayapura's Agricultural Institute (Stiper), Yunus Paelo, said  some parts of the forests in Jayapura Municipality and the surrounding region had been damaged and this would eventually  trigger floods and landslides unless forests in the region were given  better care and preserved. .          "You can see now , Wasior has been hit by flood. Jayapura is often hit by floods and landslides as well.  This was caused by  irresponsible forest and land reclamation," Paelo said.***3*** (T.A014/A/HAJM/23:35/a014) 06-10-2010 23:41: