Last week, several earthquakes struck western Sumatra in Indonesia. Malini Mozaria, from the European Commission's Humanitarian Aid Department (ECHO) is in Sumatra to review the extent of the devastation. This is her take on the rescue work currently being carried out in the affected area.

On Wednesday 30 September at 17.16 local time, an earthquake struck in western Sumatra, ca 53 kilometres west of Padang. The earthquake had an estimated magnitude of 7.6 on the Richter scale. The next day another earthquake struck. ECHO in on site to provide people in need with immediate disaster relief and Mrs Malini Mozaria is one of the posted officials whose job it is to review the situation after the earthquakes.

What is your impression of the situation and the mood at the scene?
“There is an enormous sense of solidarity among the people, they help one another and make sure that everybody has food and a roof over their heads. Nobody is just looking to themselves. They support one another to the best of their abilities and want to help as much as they can.”

What are the latest numbers of those dead and injured?
“The latest numbers I received from the evening of 7 October, mention 704 dead, 295 missing, 746 seriously injured and over 1000 injured. Over 100 000 buildings have been destroyed and 100 000 homes are more or less destroyed.”  

Can you tell us more about what ECHO does on-site?
“ECHO has a team in Jakarta and it finances relief operations, coordinates aid efforts, has a say in where money is to be spent and works together with the UN and the Red Cross. Up until now, the work in Indonesia has mainly been aimed at searching for the missing and injured people and providing emergency humanitarian aid. Right now, we are investigating the extent of the disaster by travelling around in the area, trying to coordinate aid efforts together with our partner organisations. In a more concrete way, we are now helping the most vulnerable people with medical care, clean water, food and roofs over their heads.”

What is it like for you, personally?
“I was not here for the earthquake itself, but it hurts to see the devastation and I get upset when I hear and see what has happened to people. You are of course affected by the sight of so much devastation. It is difficult to see all those people searching for their family members beneath the ruins and who want to know what has happened to their loved ones. At the same time I am grateful that the earthquake did not strike earlier in the day, when the children were in school, but schools had closed at one o'clock in the afternoon. Many school buildings and hospitals have collapsed, you see. I saw a collapsed school in which evening classes had been held and I can just imaging what it must have been like for the people in there.”

What is the most difficult aspect of your job?
“Phase one is emergency humanitarian aid and the second phase is about finding out who does what. The most difficult thing is to know if we have reached everybody. This is a great challenge for all parties. Indonesian authorities and many EU countries have all helped and we are now cooperating with organisations such as IOM, the Dutch and French Red Cross, Oxfam and MapAction.”

Will ECHO contribute with more humanitarian aid in the future?
“I just came back from the actual earthquake area. We will be on-site for another month at least, and then we will see how things develop. ECHO has so far contributed with EUR 8 million to Asia and the Pacific region. It is too early to say if further help is needed, but as long as the need for help remains, the Commission is ready to step in. It is the rain season in Indonesia, so until March 2010, there is still the threat of landslides.”