Bandung Health agency provides free medical treatment for Java quake victims

The Bandung Health Agency has ensured that all earthquake victims in their area will receive free medical treatment in their emergency medical centers at least until next month.

Ahmad Kustiadi, head of the agency, said his office had deployed 34 doctors and 52 paramedics to more than a dozen districts which were hit hard by the powerful earthquake.

'We've prioritized sending more doctors to the districts which have the most victims, like Pangalengan and Kertasari,' he said.

Data from the Bandung crisis center shows that 14 people were killed and 661 other were injured in the regency after a 7.3-magnitude quake shook the southern part of West Java on Wednesday afternoon.

Among the 31 districts in Bandung, Pangalengan, famous for its tea plantations and milk production, is the most severely hit area with 10 people dead and 306 others injured. An emergency medical center on Jl. Pangalengan Raya is seeing at least 200 patients each day

Currently, thousands of people in the district are still living in makeshift tents as their houses were destroyed by the quake. (hdt)