IsraAID Sends Rescue Team To Help Indonesia Earthquake Survivors

IsraAID deployed an emergency response team to the Indonesian island of Sulawesi this week following the devastating 7.5 magnitude earthquake and tsunami, which hit on September 28, killing more than 1,400 people, destroying more than 65,000 homes, and displacing at least 70,000 people  to more than 140 evacuation centers, according to recent media reports.

Numbers continue to rise as authorities restore communication and access to areas the most affected by the disaster.

The Israeli-based NGO will “distribute vital relief items, provide mental health support to vulnerable groups, and conduct an initial needs assessment to determine immediate and long-term needs, including medical care, psychological support and safe water provision,” the group said.

“The communities affected by this disaster need immediate support, as the full scale of destruction is only now becoming clear, with thousands experiencing the trauma and uncertainty of displacement and the tragic loss of loved ones,” IsraAID co-CEOs Navonel Glick and Yotam Polizer said in a statement. “Our emergency response team will have a crucial impact in the immediate, post-disaster situation and assess long-term needs as Indonesia rebuilds.”

IsraAID has played a significant role in rescue and response for large-scale disasters including the 2015 Nepal earthquake, 2013 Typhoon Yolanda in the Philippines, and the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan. They continue to provide long-term support to communities in Nepal and the Philippines, as well as deploying teams to the Philippines during its recent typhoon and the Indian state of Kerala during disastrous flooding.