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  • Writer's pictureNewton's Newspaper
    • Apr 20, 2021
    • 3 min read

Floods and Landslides in Flores Island and East Timor worsen the Health Crisis in Indonesia


Rescuers are looking for survivors in the village of Nelemamadike in East Flores, after torrential rains, floods and landslides in Indonesia and East Timor. Picture taken on April the 5th, 2021 and released by the National Search and Rescue Agency (AFP Photo)


On Sunday, April the 4th, Tropical Cyclone Seroja hit the island of Flores and East Timor located in eastern Indonesia, generating powerful floods and landslides that took over everything. According to CNN and Al Jazeera English channel on YouTube: these chaotic events caused by extreme weathers have already killed dozens of people in at least seven villages, buried under mud or washed away dozens of houses, destroyed and collapsed bridges, blocked the roads and left several missing residents.


According to Indonesia’s climate statistics, 80% of disasters due to climate change are dominated by floods (39%), heavy winds and storms (26%), landslides (22%), and droughts (8%). When extreme disasters like these happen in Indonesia, they usually end up in a health and economic crisis since houses, food, and clean water are all gone.


The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) started warning Indonesian residents about possible extreme weather conditions on the February 10-16 period when their rainy season began. But, no one thought that the morning of Easter celebration would become a tragedy when the powerful Cyclone Seroja hit Eastern Indonesia, creating currents of mud that took over everything, ending up in a new critical health crisis inside a global health crisis (Covid-19 Pandemic).


This disaster has left the affected areas without any protection against Covid-19, making the sanitary crisis even bigger since infections are way more likely without any emergency or medical support nearby. But apart from being exposed to Covid-19, the residents of the affected areas have been left without clean water for their personal hygiene, potable water for them to drink, food, personal belongings and the state of their houses and towns are critical. Following the days after the disaster, many families have had to evacuate their houses, since they are completely flooded and in an uninhabitable state. Therefore, authorities and rescue teams are prioritizing the equipation of Covid-19 safety devices to evacuation centers as well as having numerous refugee shelters with all basic needs and medical attention (including special Covid-19 attention) for the families who had to evacuate their homes or whose houses were completely destroyed.



According to The Guardian Newspaper: more than 100 residents were killed by the fast floods, dozens are still missing, and entire neighborhoods were lost. The strength of the landslides is so much that several bridges of the area have collapsed. And the great majority of roads have been blocked, therefore blocking access to rescue teams and medical specialists trying to reach the affected areas. Indonesian authorities claim that they are trying to get food, water, masks, and other essentials to evacuation centers as shortly as possible despite the obstacles.


Eastern Indonesia finds itself in a bigger crisis now, but that doesn’t mean they have to confront it on their own. There are many ways in which other countries can help the Indonesian rescue teams, like sending donations, specialists, etc. This Pandemic has affected several countries, Indonesia being one of them, so this is a chance for the rest of the world to come together to help countries in need.


Martina


 

Sources:


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