Indonesian president urges accelerated evacuation of flood

Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Tuesday called for accelerated evacuation of people in areas affected by the flash floods or landslides in West Nusa Tenggara and East Nusa Tenggara provinces.

The president called on the related departments including the National Disaster Management Agency and the National Search and Rescue Agency to mobilise more personnel to the affected areas in the two provinces.

Additional personnel were expected to reach more affected areas, including isolated areas and various island clusters in the flood-hit provinces to accelerate evacuation, search and rescue of victims, he told a virtual limited cabinet meeting.

The president also urged the deployment of more equipment to the flood-affected areas to assist in the local anti-disaster efforts, and dispatch of a medical team as soon as possible.

“I asked the Minister of Health to increase the number of health services in the field, also prepare hospitals to handle the victims, and ensure the availability of medical personnel and medicines,’’ he said.

According to him, the government has sent relief aid to the two provinces, but due to the extreme weather, the assistance has failed to fully reach the affected locations.

The president also called for speedy restoration of supporting infrastructures damaged by the disaster.

“Immediately restore the electricity network, telecommunication network, internet network, as well as logistics and fuel distribution, so that this assistance can be immediately distributed to disaster victims,’’ he said.

Meanwhile at the meeting, Widodo warned of potential disasters that could result from the very extreme weather that hit various regions in Indonesia. (Xinhua/NAN)

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