IOM is providing transport and logistical
support to the Indonesian authorities, domestic and foreign relief
groups and donor governments responding to Saturday’s
earthquake on Indonesia’s Java Island.

Staff worked into the early hours of Tuesday
morning to deliver a dozen truck-loads of relief aid provided by
the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent
Societies (IFRC) from the airport in Surakarta (Solo), Central
Java, to four distribution points in the worst-hit areas.

The 64 tons of plastic sheeting, jerry cans
and hygiene kits were distributed to survivors by the Indonesian
Red Cross in Bantul, Klaten, Yogjakarta and Sleman. A further 10
IOM trucks loaded with tents, tarps and family kits were being
loaded Tuesday afternoon for distribution to Magelang and
Bantul.

IOM trucks are also standing by at the airport
in Surakarta to transport 32 tons of aid, including generators,
medical kits and tarpaulins donated by the Italian government,
which are due to arrive at 18.30hrs on Tuesday.

In addition to delivering desperately needed
supplies, IOM has opened an office in the Yogyakarta
governor’s office both to serve as a focal point for specific
requests for transportation help and to implement a tracking system
at the request of the Indonesian government.

An estimated 5,200 people in the agricultural
heartland of Java are believed to have died in the 6.3 magnitude
quake and subsequent aftershocks.

Indonesian officials believe more than 6,000
people were injured and the local health system is overwhelmed by
the demand for services. More than 30,000 homes have been reduced
to rubble, leaving an estimated 150,000 people homeless.

An eight member IOM medical team, mostly
veterans of the emergency response to the 2004 tsunami, have
established an office in Sardjito Hospital in Yogjakarta which will
serve as the operational hub to assist hundreds of survivors who
have received treatment and want to return home.

IOM reunited two male patients, one of who had
his arm amputated and the other suffering serious leg wounds, with
their families in Bantul on Tuesday afternoon.

“It is a recurring theme, so IOM agreed
to take it on. We also did this in Aceh following the tsunami and
in Nias after the earthquake there,” says IOM physician Dr.
Nenette Motus.

In recognition of the enormous strain
survivors have been under over the past four days, IOM has also
brought in a mental health consultant to evaluate the need for
short- and meduim-term support for people deeply traumatized by the
loss of loved ones.

IOM currently has 33 staff in Yogjakarta and
outlying areas.

For more information please contact in
Yogyakarta:

Paul Dillon

Tel. +62.8126988035

E-mail: "mailto:pdillon@iom.int" target="_blank" title=
"">pdillon@iom.int 

Shima Roy

Tel. +62.811947143.

E-mail: "mailto:sroy@iom.int" target="_blank" title="">sroy@iom.int