nagelaa
29-12-2004, 04:32 AM
Stopped clock
In the midst of it all, you can see limbs sticking out bodies still lying where they were left when the water retreated
I have got to know this area during my trips to Aceh over the past two years. Banda Aceh used to be a bustling market area, there were fruit and vegetable stalls and cafes along the sides of the road.
Now it is absolutely wrecked. There is mud, debris, masonry, cars, motorbikes, all upturned, mangled, covered in mud. And in the midst of it all, you can see limbs sticking out, bodies still lying where they were left when the water retreated.
And up on a roof in front of me, there are more dead bodies.
Behind that there is the famous mosque of Banda Aceh. Most of that seems to have remained remarkably intact but all around is a sea of catastrophic devastation. The mosque's clock is stopped at 8.25 - the time the wave struck.
And there are still large portions of Aceh province that no one has been able to get to at all. Officials fear for the worst.
What is needed immediately, officials are telling us, is fresh water, food, medicines and shelter.
They are also asking for medical supplies. There is not enough basic equipment, such as disinfectant or surgical gloves.
The Indonesian authorities have been able to fly in some relief supplies. In Medan, I watched one Hercules aircraft take off full of supplies.
That is now going to be ferrying back and forth, but we have yet to see any international presence on the ground.
Read full article at BBC news:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4129805.stm
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In the midst of it all, you can see limbs sticking out bodies still lying where they were left when the water retreated
I have got to know this area during my trips to Aceh over the past two years. Banda Aceh used to be a bustling market area, there were fruit and vegetable stalls and cafes along the sides of the road.
Now it is absolutely wrecked. There is mud, debris, masonry, cars, motorbikes, all upturned, mangled, covered in mud. And in the midst of it all, you can see limbs sticking out, bodies still lying where they were left when the water retreated.
And up on a roof in front of me, there are more dead bodies.
Behind that there is the famous mosque of Banda Aceh. Most of that seems to have remained remarkably intact but all around is a sea of catastrophic devastation. The mosque's clock is stopped at 8.25 - the time the wave struck.
And there are still large portions of Aceh province that no one has been able to get to at all. Officials fear for the worst.
What is needed immediately, officials are telling us, is fresh water, food, medicines and shelter.
They are also asking for medical supplies. There is not enough basic equipment, such as disinfectant or surgical gloves.
The Indonesian authorities have been able to fly in some relief supplies. In Medan, I watched one Hercules aircraft take off full of supplies.
That is now going to be ferrying back and forth, but we have yet to see any international presence on the ground.
Read full article at BBC news:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4129805.stm
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