A Huge Earthquake in Jakarta and Vicinity

President SBY's Special Staff for Social and Disasters Management Andi Arif told radio audience last Sunday that an earthquake with a magnitude of 8.7 on the Richter Scale could hit Jakarta and vicinity.

The Jakarta Globe quoted Andi Arif as saying that the epicenter of such earthquake would be located in the Sunda Strait (that separates the islands of Java and Sumatera). 

In reaction to this statement, the Governor of West Java which borders with Jakarta, asked the public not to be panic. He said that he will coordinate with the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) to obtain more accurate data.  

Further, a member of the House of Representatives criticized Andi Arif  for making people panic with such prediction  He said that Andi Arif should communicate it with the proper authorities i.e BMKG and the Ministry of  Mineral Resource and Energy. 

Considering that we are already very sick and tired of all those terrors caused by mysterious bombs, the so called NII, etc, I hope that government officials would not make any statements that would make the public panic.

Nuclear Reactors in Indonesia

Today I received some text messages from friends warning about the spread of radioactive materials from the Fukushima nuclear reactor in Japan damaged by the recent earthquake and tsunami, that may be blown by the wind to other countries like the Philippines and Indonesia.

I was not fooled by this messages because I have been following the news about this matter since yesterday, therefore I understand that the main part of the Fukushima nuclear reactor is still safe.

But I can understand why people are very worried, because they still remember about the blast of the nuclear reactor in Chernobyl, Russia  in 1986, in which tens of thousands of people were by radioactive materials leaked from the reactor.

Fear of such nuclear tragedy has cause pro and contra on the government's plan to build large nuclear power reactors in this country.

Actually, nuclear reactor is not something new for Indonesia, as a matter of fact according to Wikipedia Indonesia has built and operated Nuclear Research Reactors for many decades.

Today, the National Atomic Energy Agency (BATAN) operates three nuclear research reactors at the following locations :
1)  Serpong, Banten       :  30 MW Multi-Purpose Reactor (1987)
2)  Bandung, West Java :  Triga Mark II (250 Kw in 1965, 2 MW in 1997)
3)  Yogyakarta              :  Triga Mark II (100 Kw in 1979)

Indonesia is viable to build a nuclear reactor in every provinces due to there are ample stocks of materials and appropriate geological support. Various locations have been proposed for building nuclear reactors that will actually be taken into production for the purpose of generating electricity:

1) Muria, Central Java
2) Gorontalo, in the North of Sulawesi
3) Bangka Belitung province
4) Kalimantan.

As a legal basis for the development of nuclear power reactors, Indonesia has promulgated the Nuclear Power Law in 1997, which stipulated that Indonesia shall have a lot much bigger nuclear power reactor in 2019 that will provide much more electric power (at least 200 MW) for the country.

Considering that Indonesia will need lots of electric power for development of the country, and the source of electricity, i.e. coal, gas, petroleum, geothermal, is limited, I think we should keep an open mind on the possibility of building a nuclear power reactors that can provide much bigger electricity.

But in this case we must make sure that reactor would be located in a place that would not be affected by earthquake and/or other natural disasters, operated and maintained by people who are highly skilled and disciplined.

The Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan

A powerful earthquake with magnitude of 8.9 on Richter Scale struck the north eastern coast of Japan on Friday unleashing Tsunami with more than 7 meters high waves that swept away boats, cars and homes while widespread fires burned out of control.

According to The Jakarta Globe, the earthquake was followed by more than 50 aftershocks for hours, many of them of more than magnitude 6.0. Dozens of cities and villages along a 2,100-kilometer stretch of coastline were shaken by violent tremors that reached Tokyo, located hundreds of kilometers from the epicenter.

BBC quoted local officials as saying that more than 1,000 people are thought to have died.and many others missing. Hundreds of bodies were found in the northeastern coastal city of Sendai. The death toll was likely to continue climbing given the scale of the disaster.

Electricity and Communications have been badly affected by the earthquake and tsunami until noon today.

This afternoon, a magnitude 6 earthquake has caused a large explosion at the Fukushima nuclear power plant in north-eastern Japan, close to the epicentre of Friday's earthquake. Officials fear a meltdown at one of the plant's reactors. Tens of thousands of people in the surrounding area have been urged to evacuate

Noriyuki Shikata, deputy cabinet secretary for the Japanese prime minister tweets: " Blast was caused by accumulated hydrogen combined with oxygen in the space between container and outer structure. No damage to container."
 
Officials of the Indonesian Embassy in Tokyo told TV-One that there are around 20.000 Indonesian citizens living in Japan at the moment, and in order to know their condition the Embassy in Tokyo and Consulate General in Osaka have opened a hot line phone connection.

The Tsunami has triggered alert in countries located south of Japan like Taiwan, the Philippines and Indonesia, but no casualty was reported. And region in the Province of Papua was affected. While in Bitung, North Sulawesi the height of sea waves increase only 10 Centimeter above normal.

President SBY has expressed sympathy and condolence and offered assistance, while countries Australia and New Zealand have sent their rescue team.

In this connection I would like to express my condolence and deepest sympathy to the families of the victims.

Chile Quake doesn't affect Indonesia

In the wake of the 8.8 magnitude Earthquake that hit and killed more than 200 people in Chile early Saturday, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii, USA, has issued a Tsunami Warning across the Asia Pacific region.

In reaction to this alert, authorities in Japan, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Island, Australia and New Zealand have have warned citizens living in the coastlines of their countries about the possibility of giant killer waves caused by the earthquake in Chile.

Meanwhile, according to the Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology & Geophysics Agency, the said warning does not include Indonesia's easternmost province of Papua, because it is located very far away from the epicenter of the earthquake i.e. in Chile.

For details, please click here, here and here.

Considering Indonesia has been frequently struck by earthquake including the 2004 Tsunami in Aceh that killed more than 200,000 people, I hope that our authorties would always pay serious attention to any tsunami warnings issued by the international tsunami center.

Indonesian Volunteers & Donations for Haiti

Around one hundred thousand people died, many others injured and so many buildings destroyed when an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 on Richter Scale struck Haiti on 13 January. Many countries have sent volunteers and donations to rescue the people of Haiti.
According to Kompas, Indonesia has sent 75 volunteers and donated Rp 17.5 billion.

Indonesia Donates Rp 17,5 Billion to Haiti Quake Victims
Jumat, 15 Januari 2010 | 14:28 WIB

BANDUNG, KOMPAS.com - The Indonesian government has sent a donation of Rp. 17.5 billion for the earthquake victims in Haiti. In addition, 75 experts have also been sent to assist the victims for two weeks.

"They (the experts) depart today and they're from various institutions, such as the Department of Social Affairs and the Indonesian Red Cross. We really hope that the help will ease the victims' suffering," stated Minister of Social Affairs Salim Segaf Al'Jufrie at the Bandung School of Social Welfare, Friday. (Cornelius Helmlambang/C17-09)

Indonesian Survivors in Haiti

Two Indonesians have survived an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 on the Richter Scale that struck Haiti earlier today, while three others still missing. Here is an article that I have quoted from The Jakarta Globe.

Brazilian peacekeepers check the damage to the UN headquarters after an earthquake in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. (Reuters Photo/Eduardo Munoz)

Three Indonesian UN Volunteers Still Missing in Haiti After Quake

Indonesia’s Permanent Representative Office at the United Nations Security Council in New York on Thursday announced that five Indonesians were in Haiti when an earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale struck on Tuesday.

Two of the Indonesian survivors were identified as Endang Satriyani and Yogi Anggoro, while three others are still missing.

Indonesia’s Charge d’Affaires at the Security Council, Hasan Kleib, said on Thursday the two Indonesian survivors were volunteers at the UN Stabilisation Mission (Minustah) in Haiti’s capital city, Port-au-Prince.

“They managed to get out of their office before it collapsed,” Hasan said, adding that his staff managed to contact him later through an Indonesian working at a UN mission in Liberia, Luigi Pralangga.

Luigi told Hasan that there were three other Indonesian women in Port-au-Prince when the quake struck.

“Yogi said he had recently met them in Port-au-Prince. The three women came from Bali but their names are yet to be disclosed. A report says they were working at Caribee Hotel in Port-au-Prince,” Hasan said.

The Indonesian Permanent Representative Office in New York along with Minustah’s offices in New York and Port-au-Prince are still monitoring developments in the search for the three missing Indonesians.

According to UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, more than 100 UN staff personnel were inside the building when it collapsed, including UN Special Representative to Haiti, Hedi Annabi, and his deputy Luiz Carlos da Costa.

Are we ready for Deadlier Earthquake?

On 26 Dec. 2004, an earthquake with a magnitude of 8.6 on the Richter Scale struck the western coast of the Island Island of Sumatera causing Tsunami and killing more than 170 thousand people in the Province of Aceh.

Many countries have shown solidarity and provide various kinds of supports including US$ 7 billion in finance, for the reconstruction in Aceh.

Since then, Indonesia has been struck by many other earthquakes the deadliest ones being in Yogjakarta on May 2006 that killed more than 6,000 people and West Sumatera last September killing more than 1,100 people and destroying thousands of building, roads, bridges.

In spite of our experiences in handling similar earthquakes, some people assumed that the rescue and reconstruction efforts are slow. This assumption is caused by lack of understanding on the difficult conditions in the place of tragedy.

Considering the above, I hope that the authorities, especially the National Natural Disaster Recovery Agency, the National Search and Rescue Agency, would make better efforts to anticipate future earthquakes. For example by providing information about natural disasters that might struck Indonesia, and building & improving early warning systems.
Further, the authority must also be strict in granting permits for buildings, for pumping ground water, cutting forests trees, etc.

Although the above efforts would not guarantee that there would not be any more casualties, however they could at least minimize the impact.


Photo - impact of the Tsunami in Aceh : Courtesy of East Asian Times

The Earthquake & the Parliament

Last Wednesday, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.6 on the Richter Scale devastated the capital town of West Sumatera Padang and the town of Pariaman, causing hundreds of people killed and missing and injuring many others. Hundreds of houses, office, school, other public utility buildings collapsed.

Last Thursday another earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 on the Richter Scale rocked the province of Jambi.In order to handle this disasters, the central government has allocated an emergency fund of Rp. 100 billion.

This morning, various TV stations reported that Indonesian and foreign rescue teams are still looking for survivors who are trapped under the wreckage of buildings or landslides.

While Indonesians mourn over the impact of the earthquakes in both provinces, a glamorous event took place at the capital city Jakarta last Thursday i.e. induction of the new members of Parliament consisting of 560 members of People's Representative Council (DPR) and 132 members of Regional Representative Council (DPD).
Although the induction ceremony takes only several hours however according to Kompas the cost is as high as Rp. 46 Billion.

Considering that the Parliament (DPR & DPD) are permanent institutions, I felt that the costs for induction of their members should not be very high, especially now that Indonesia is facing the earthquakes and the economy is still recovering from the impact of global financial crisis.
I hope that the new members of Parliament will do their very best to serve the interests of the Indonesian people, and do not follow the decadent behaviors of some of their predecessors.

Photos: Courtesy of Kompas.

Jakarta Trembled by Earthquake

I used to think that the city where I lived Jakarta and neighboring province of West Java are places in Indonesia which are free from earthquakes.

However, yesterday afternoon I realized that I have been wrong, after an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.3 on the Richter scale stroked the town of Tasikmalaya, southern part of West Java. The tremors were strongly felt in all parts of Jakarta, causing panic not only to those who are working and living in high rise buildings but almost everyone in the city.

According to a spokesman of the Disaster Management Agency, 57 people died, at least 110 people were hospitalized 10 of them were in critical condition. 10,000 buildings collapsed, which includes houses, schools, offices and places of worship, most of them located in 10 regencies in West Java, including Tasikmalaya itself, Sukabumi, Cianjur, and one in Central Java.

For details on the above, please click here, here, here, here, here and here.

The above earthquake has made me and many other people living in Jakarta and vicinity that we are not free from earthquakes which could cause tsunami. Therefore, from now on we should always prepare ourselves for possibility of other earthquakes in the future.


Photo: Courtesy of The Jakarta Globe.