JAKARTA – Indonesian President Joko Widodo today visited Cugenang town in Cianjur district, the epicentre of a 5.6-magnitude quake that killed 268 people.
The president ordered a search-and-rescue agency to evacuate and find victims buried by landslides triggered by the quake.
He pledged to help the district with the rebuilding of infrastructure and expressed condolences to victims and their families, who were struck by this disaster yesterday in West Java province.
The victims would receive a maximum of 50 million rupiah (RM14,616) each for repairs to their damaged houses, said the president – also affectionately known as Jokowi – after visiting shelters that were taking care of hundreds of people who were displaced by the disaster.
According to a press statement, Jokowi surveyed the damage from the quake and met with local communities during his visit.
He was accompanied by Coordinating Minister of Human Development and Culture Muhadjir Effendy and West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil.
Meanwhile, Indonesian National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) chief Suharyanto said in a virtual briefing that apart from the 268 deaths, there are 1,083 people injured and 151 remain missing based on data compiled as at 5pm local time.
Over 56,362 people were placed in relief centres after 21,282 houses were damaged, with around 6,570 having collapsed.
The embassy of Malaysia in Jakarta and the Asean Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Centre) have expressed their sincere condolences to the victims and their families.
The AHA Centre has sent a letter of sympathy with an offer of assistance to BNPB, affirming its willingness and readiness to support the authority.
The centre’s disaster monitoring and response system estimates 3.29 million people, 981,500 households, and US$12.2 billion (RM55.87 billion) worth of infrastructure have been exposed by the quake’s depth and magnitude, AHA noted in a flash update. – Bernama, November 22, 2022
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