In his written statement received here on Sunday, Acting Head of the East Java BPBD Gatot Soebroto noted that the aid was delivered using a boat.
"The aid included 200 sheets of tarpaulins, 100 mattresses, 200 blankets, 100 packages of groceries, 50 boxes of side dishes, 50 boxes of ready-to-eat food, 50 boxes of mineral water, one refugee tent, and one family tent," he said.
On Saturday (March 23), he added, a joint team comprising officials from the East Java BPBD and several institutions assessed the extent of damage, loaded and unloaded the provided aid, and made preparations for erecting the refugee tent.
After coordinating with local officials on the island, the team scouted villages to inspect damaged buildings, including those in Gelam Village.
"The East Java BPBD also inspected a number of refugee camps in Suwari Village, Sangkapura Sub-district, one of the most severely-affected villages in the region," he stated.
He further said that the East Java BPBD worked hand in hand with officials from the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI), National Police (Polri) and Gresik BPBD to load and unload the aid provided to Bawean residents.
A series of earthquakes, including a 6.5 magnitude one, hit Tuban District on Friday (March 22) and were followed by several aftershocks. The tremors were felt in Tuban and surrounding areas, including the provincial capital of Surabaya as well as Gresik.
Some infrastructure damage was reported on Bawean Island, but there were no casualties.
The epicenter was located 130 km northeast of Tuban at a shallow depth of 10 km, according to Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG).
Meanwhile, Secretary of the East Java BPBD Andhika N. Sudigda noted that the joint team had not yet erected tents for the evacuees.
"Our initial plan was to erect the tents right away. However, we had to postpone the plan since plenty of locals are resting in the intended locations," he remarked after a coordination meeting for the acceleration of the handling of the earthquakes.
Gresik District Head Ahmad Yani and officials from the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) and BMKG attended the meeting.
According to data from the East Java BPBD, updated on Sunday at 1 a.m., Gresik and six neighboring regions have been hit by a total of 201 aftershocks.
The natural disaster has damaged thousands of buildings, including 78 schools and 156 houses of worship, and displaced 15,731 people.
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Translator: Indra S, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Tia Mutiasari
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