"They (the aftershocks) took place 122 times, but they became weaker (over time or as per occurrence), (so) we urge residents to not panic too much," Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Muhadjir Effendy remarked here on Tuesday.
The minister said that since Monday, some 122 aftershocks occurred following the earthquake. With the weakening of the tremors, he appealed to the public to no longer harbor concerns.
He said the government expressed concern over the catastrophic event that claimed the lives of some 162 people, and most of the victims were children.
To this end, he decided that the coordination post should be located at the Cianjur Pendopo, a government building, or the Cianjur District Head's Office, where people can obtain information and can contact the coordination post.
"The emergency period will be dealt with as soon as possible because the sooner, the better, (as it) shortens the suffering of the victims," Effendy stated.
Meanwhile, Cianjur District Head Herman Suherman noted on Tuesday that the village heads along with Bhabinkamtibmas, the Community Police Officers, and Babinsa, village affiliated non-commissioned officers, in each region will conduct further data collection on the earthquake's impact.
"Hopefully, (the data) would be updated regularly. It should not take long. I feel pity for my residents, as they are traumatized, families died, and so on," Suherman remarked.
Meanwhile, a total of 14 evacuation posts were set up to facilitate 13,784 evacuees affected by the earthquake. Some logistics assistance had been distributed by the West Java Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) and the National Police.
West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil confirmed that as of Monday at 9:30 p.m. local time, at least 162 people died due to the earthquake.
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Translator: Bagus R, Kenzu
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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