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Government dispatches counselors to support Aceh quake victims
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Receiving care — Accompanied by Health Minister Nila Moeloek (right), President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo (left) visits an earthquake victim at Dr. Zainoel Abidin Hospital in Banda Aceh on Thursday evening. (Courtesy of the Presidential Office/File)
T
he Social Affairs Ministry has deployed special teams to Aceh to help local residents who experienced trauma after a 6.5-magnitude earthquake hit the province, killing at least 102 people.
The team, which consists of psychologists and ministry officials, will focus on providing post-disaster counseling for adults and activities to cheer up children following the disaster.
Around 7,500 residents have sought refuge in ministry-managed shelters, Social Affairs Minister Khofifah Indar Parawansa said in a statement on Friday.
"The majority of [those seeking refuge] are women and children [...] hopefully [with the help of the trauma teams] they will recover and forget the bad experiences from the disaster," she said.
The earthquake hit Aceh early on Wednesday morning, destroying buildings in Pidie Jaya regency. It occurred at 5:03 a.m. local time at a depth of 10 kilometers, about 106 km southeast of the provincial capital of Banda Aceh.
The trauma teams have set up in seven temporary shelters managed by the ministry in Bireun and Pidie Jaya regencies. The latter is the worst-affected area following the quake. (hwa)
