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Schools, health centers in Bima prioritized during extended emergency relief period
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After the flood – Military personnel and local residents work together to clear flood debris in Bima, West Nusa Tenggara, on Dec. 26. (Antara/Dhimas B. Pratama)
H
ead of the Disaster Mitigation Agency's (BPBD) West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) chapter Muhammad Rum said several targets set for the extended Bima flooding emergency relief period included the clearing of debris in schools and health centers in the next seven days at the latest.
He said the emergency relief period scheduled to expire on Jan. 5 had been extended by 14 days because the impacts of the flash floods, which swept several areas across Bima late last year, had not been fully dealt with.
“The recovery process has not yet been fully completed so the decision was made to extend the emergency relief period by 14 days until Jan. 19,” said Rum on Friday.
Meanwhile, the clearing of debris in houses and neighborhoods was targeted to be finished at the latest one day before the emergency relief period expires on Jan. 19, he went on.
Rum further explained the Bima administration would involve third parties to normalize the drainage system of the city by using its ready-to-disburse funds. The administration was in the process of renting heavy equipment for its river normalization effort.
“It is hoped that the Bima administration can work intensively with the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency [BMKG] in providing either a weather forecast or early warning information for residents in the city during this emergency relief period,” he said.
(Read also: Post-flood recovery in Bima may take three years: Officials)
According to National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) data, the flash floods in Bima had caused severe infrastructure damage, in which 229 houses were destroyed, 716 and 739 housing units suffered severe and medium damage, respectively, and 17,706 houses were inundated.
Sixty-three health facilities also suffered catastrophic damage, including four community health centers (Puskesmas), 29 sub-community health centers (Pustu), 29 village birth clinics (Polindes) and one regional health laboratory (Labkesda).
Of the educational facilities in the area, 27 school buildings were reported to have suffered damage, of which 18 elementary schools suffered severe damage while five junior high schools and four senior high schools/vocational schools suffered medium damage.
“Nine bridges and 40-kilometer-long roads in the city have suffered damage. Five tap water facilities were heavily damaged and one water reservoir suffered medium damage,” BNPB spokesperson Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said. The agency predicted the disaster to have caused Rp 1 trillion (US$ 74.91 million) worth in losses to the city administration. (ebf)
