Jakarta (ANTARA News) - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has outlined four priorities in handling efforts to rescue and assist victims of the magnitude-7.4 earthquake and a subsequent tsunami in Palu, Donggala, Sigi, and Parigi Moutong districts, Central Sulawesi Province.

The four priorities are search, rescue, and evacuation efforts; medical assistance; helping refugees in shelters and emergency tents; and infrastructure reconstruction efforts, the president noted at a limited cabinet meeting here, Tuesday.

The limited cabinet meeting was attended by Vice President Muhammad Jusuf Kalla, Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Wiranto, Coordinating Minister for Development of Human and Culture Puan Maharani, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut Binsar Panjaitan, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Darmin Nasution, National Police Chief General Tito Karnavian, Chief of the National Defense Forces (TNI) Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto, and Chief of the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) M. Syaugi.

The head of state urged Basarnas, the National Police, and TNI to increase the number of personnel to help in rescue and evacuation efforts not only in Palu but also to go deeper to Donggala, Sigi, and Parigi Moutong.

The Public Works and Public Housing Ministry must deploy more heavy equipment for evacuation efforts.

He also ordered the Health Ministry to set up more field hospitals to help the injured victims.

Other necessities, such as emergency tents, medicines, food, drinking water, fuel, and infant food, must also be made available adequately, he noted.

More security officers comprising police and military officers must also deployed to secure logistic distribution, he noted.

Jokowi had also instructed repair of the damaged Palu airport`s runway and electricity facilities in areas devastated by the earthquake and tsunami.

The natural disasters in Central Sulawesi on Sept 28 had claimed at least 1,234 lives and seriously injured 540 others.



Reporting by Desca L Natalia
Editing by Fardah Assegaf

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Editor: Yosep Hariyadi
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