Indonesia: One Month After the Earthquake

July 14, 2014

One month after a major earthquake hit Sumatra, Indonesia, Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is still operating mobile clinics, giving mental health support to survivors, monitoring epidemics, distributing relief items, as well as providing water and sanitation support to the severely affected areas surrounding Padang and Pariaman.

One month after an earthquake of 7.6 magnitude hit the Indonesian island of Sumatra, Doctors without Borders/MSF is focusing its efforts on the villages surrounding the coastal cities of Padang and Pariaman, which were hit by devastating landslides triggered by the shock.

Indonesia 2009 © Alan Cheung/MSF

Daisy Plana, a MSF mental health officer from the Philippines, is part of the team that provides psychological support to the victims of the earthquake.

Indonesia 2009 © Alan Cheung/MSF

Both group and individual consultations are carried out for traumatized adults and children who need mental health support. MSF has also arranged community activities especially for children, including playing sports as a form of therapy and release.

Indonesia 2009 © Alan Cheung/MSF

After the earthquake, Alvin’s school was closed and he had to stay at home. The school reopened on October 12 and he says he is glad to be back. “I am so happy, because I have a lot of friends in school and I can play with them.”

Indonesia 2009 © Alan Cheung/MSF

One month after an earthquake hit Sumatra, children are returning to school in Pauh village, near Padang.

Indonesia 2009 © Alan Cheung/MSF

Alvion, 25, and his mother are teachers in the school in Pauh village. His home was destroyed by the earthquake and his family remains shocked by the event. “We are traumatized and we can’t sleep well, even my baby,” he says.

Indonesia 2009 © Alan Cheung/MSF

MSF has provided water and sanitation support to the villages near Pariaman, and set up a camp with waterproof shelters for 90 families in the nearby village ok Kampung Panas, which was severely affected by the earthquake.

Indonesia 2009 © Alan Cheung/MSF

Zaidir is now staying in the MSF camp. Initially, he was staying in a tent provided by the government. “When it rained, the water came into the tent,” he says. He now lives with his family in a waterproof tent.

Indonesia 2009 © Alan Cheung/MSF

MSF continues to distribute tarps, blankets, and kits for hygiene and cooking. MSF teams aim to have distributed relief items to 16,000 families in villages close to Padang and to 10,000 families in villages near Pariaman by mid-November.

Indonesia 2009 © Alan Cheung/MSF