The government will help residents whose houses are affected by the earthquake by building temporary and permanent housingSimpang Empat, W Sumatra (ANTARA) - The government is starting to prepare to plan to build temporary housing for victims of the 6.1-magnitude earthquake in West Pasaman, West Sumatra, according to an official.
"The government will help residents whose houses are affected by the earthquake by building temporary and permanent housing," commanding officer of the 0305/Pasaman District Military Command, Lieutenant Colonel of cavalry Hery Bhakti, stated here on Friday.
Bhakti made the statement at a press conference on developments pertaining to earthquake handling in the districts of West Pasaman and Pasaman assisted by West Pasaman Deputy District Head Risnawanto and other officials.
Bhakti, who additionally serves as commander of the Disaster Emergency Response Command Post in Simpang Empat, noted that the government will also provide assistance of Rp600 thousand per month to affected residents until construction of the permanent housing is completed.
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The commander stated that the command post still awaits the results of data collection on the condition of the residents' houses in order to realize the plan.
For the purpose of data collection, the government is collaborating with four universities --Andalas University, Bung Hatta University, Padang State University, and the Padang Institute of Technology -- to categorize the extent of damage -- minor, moderate, and major -- caused to houses.
"Teams comprising 76 people (in total) have been dispatched. This data collection is expected to be completed to serve as a reference for the following policy," he stated.
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Earlier, West Pasaman was hit by a 6.1-magnitude earthquake on February 25, 2022, which affected three sub-districts: Talamau, Pasaman, and Kinali.
As of Friday, March 4, 2022, over 4,800 houses were reported to be damaged by the earthquake. Consequently, over 11 thousand residents were evacuated.
Apart from the residents' houses, the earthquake also damaged 55 educational facilities, 13 health facilities, and 40 places of worship.
The number of fatalities recorded as of Friday night reached nine. Meanwhile, 45 residents were seriously injured, while 336 suffered minor injuries due to the quake.
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Translator: Laila Syafarud, Raka Adji
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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