REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, NORTH LOMBOK -- Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Wiranto has ordered the military and the police to deploy special forces to handle earthquake victims in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara. He has sent one thousand marines.
"There are also a 500 Mobile Brigade personnel and second division of the Army Strategic Reserve Command troops that will be sent on special aircraft to help rescue and evacuate residents who are still buried," Wiranto noted here on Monday.
While leading the Lombok earthquake response operation in Tanjung Subdistrict, North Lombok District, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), Wiranto further said the deployment of special forces is not only to rescue and evacuate the residents but also to assist medical personnel who are in less number.
"We need medical care, because hospitals in Mataram have been filled with patients. Hence, we have to set up tents, and we need military and police personnel for assistance," he he said.
During his visit, he was accompanied by NTB Governor Tuan Guru Bajang (TGB) Muhammad Zainul Majdi; Head of the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) Willem Rampangilei; and Military Chief of General Staff (Kasum) Admiral, Didit Herdiawan.
Wiranto revealed that three battalion of Kostrad (Army Special Command) troops as well as health workers are currently heading to Lombok to provide assistance. "The Navy has dispatched KRI Dr. Soeharso, who serves at a hospital in North Lombok, to aid in the handling of victims," he explained.
Lombok Island and its surroundings were rocked by a magnitude-7 earthquake on Sunday at 19:46 local time. The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) briefly issued a tsunami warning after the earthquake.
According to the National Disaster Management Agency, the death toll from the earthquake reached 91, with 72 in North Lombok Regency, 9 in West Lombok District, 4 in Mataram City, 2 in Central Lombok District, 2 in East Lombok Regency, and 2 in Bali. All of them are Indonesian citizens.
The quake also injured 209 people and damaged houses and public facilities.
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