Oxfam and partners are scaling up their response to urgently reach 500,000 people after the Indonesian Government called for international support today and announced that more than 2.4 million people have been affected by the earthquake and tsunami in Sulawesi.
Oxfam has launched an emergency appeal for €3 million/£2.6 million to meet the immediate needs of those devastated by the disaster, with Oxfam Ireland urging the public here to donate to their Indonesia Earthquake and Tsunami Appeal to help reach the target as quickly as possible.
Oxfam Ireland’s Chief Executive Jim Clarken said: “It’s a race against time to save lives. Oxfam is scaling up its response to reach 500,000 people with essential aid like shelter packs and ready-to-eat food as well as water purification kits and hygiene supplies to keep people safe and healthy.
“The scale of the damage from the earthquake and tsunami is huge. We’re expecting the death toll to rise significantly as local officials are now counting the bodies in local hospitals and places of worship, while media reports say that mass burials are taking place to prevent the spread of deadly disease.
“In order to reach 500,000 people and more, we’re urgently appealing to the public to be generous by donating at oxfamireland.org, or in any our local shops. Every single donation will go a long way to providing a vulnerable family with life-saving support. Thank you.”
Oxfam plans to reach 100,000 people in Palu city and Donggala district in the coming days after a massive earthquake and tsunami hit towns on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi on Friday.
The aid agency and local partners will prioritise distributing ‘ready-to-eat’ meals, water, hygiene supplies and emergency shelter to those in need, while continuing to assess the devastating impact of this double disaster. Oxfam stands ready to deploy additional staff and resources to the area to support the Indonesian Government-led response.
An estimated 1.5 million people could be affected by the earthquake and tsunami, in addition to the 830 confirmed fatalities. Initial reports suggest that at least 16,732 people were forced from their homes and are scattered across 23 sites, although this number is likely to rise. The main road linking the city of Palu to the rest of Central Sulawesi has been blocked by a landslide and the airport in Palu is operating at half capacity making access difficult.
Ancilla Bere, Oxfam’s Humanitarian Manager in Indonesia, said: “Access and communication remains a big concern with a key road cut off by alandslide and other infrastructure badly damaged. It is encouraging to hear that the Indonesian Armed Forces has mobilised military aircraft and helicopters to reach people in affected areas.”
Jim Clarken, Oxfam Ireland’s Chief Executive, said: “The more information we receive, the more catastrophic the situation appears to be. We know that hundreds of thousands of people are in urgent need of life-saving aid – clean water and sanitation to stop the spread of deadly disease; food and shelter to provide some strength and comfort to those who have lost everything, now traumatised and afraid.
“We’re ready to respond and to scale-up our response as and when required. We’re appealing to the Irish public to stand with us at this crucial time by donating at oxfamireland.org and are so grateful to all those who already have.”
Oxfam and its local partners in Indonesia are assessing damage after a massive earthquake and tsunami hit coastal towns in the country’s central island of Sulawesi yesterday (Friday).
Oxfam Ireland’s Chief Executive Jim Clarken said: “All of our staff and partners in the town of Palu are safe and prepared to provide emergency aid to those affected.Our partners have been working closely with the National Disaster Management Agency and local authorities in the affected area to urgently assess the situation on the ground.”
Oxfam has previously established a Humanitarian Knowledge Hub in Indonesia which consists of 16 civil society organisations in the country, led by Jamari Sakato. Oxfam in Indonesia has been working to strengthen the capacity of this alliance as the local force in disaster risk management, and it responded to help people affected by the Lombok earthquake in July 2018.
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Spokespeople available from the region and in Ireland.
CONTACT: For interviews or more information, contact: Alice Dawson-Lyons, Oxfam Ireland: alice.dawsonlyons@oxfam.org or +353 (0) 83 198 1869
