Indonesia airlifts 777 tons of quake aid to E Nusa Tenggara

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia’s disaster agency has airlifted nearly 778 tons of emergency relief to earthquake-affected communities in East Nusa Tenggara province between Aug. 15 and Aug. 21, officials confirmed Saturday.

Berton SP Panjaitan, acting head of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency's (BNPB) data and communication center, stated on Saturday that emergency distribution across two primary air routes had surpassed 777 metric tons as of Aug. 21.

He added that supplies were being dispatched in phased deliveries to meet pressing local demands throughout the province.

The relief operation relies on a dual-track logistics strategy combining military and commercial transport.

Indonesian Air Force aircraft carried 312.7 tons of relief items, while commercial cargo planes delivered an additional 465 tons funded through the agency's emergency reserve fund.

To address critical housing shortages, emergency shelter equipment was dispatched on Friday directly to main regional distribution hubs.

Operations sent 2,968 family tents, allocating 2,332 units to Labuan Bajo and 636 to Maumere, alongside 245 large refugee tents split between Labuan Bajo with 201 units and Maumere with 44 units.

The central staging warehouse at Halim Perdanakusuma Air Force Base in Jakarta maintained an active stockpile of roughly 577 tons as of Friday, sourced from government ministries, military and police units, regional authorities, private businesses, and humanitarian groups.

To reinforce the airbridge on Saturday, military planners scheduled four dedicated transport sorties totaling 47 tons of cargo capacity.

An Airbus A-4001 with a 22-ton capacity and a Boeing A-7306 carrying 10 tons were assigned to Maumere, while a Boeing A-7305 carrying 10 tons and a Boeing A-7304 with a 5-ton capacity were routed to Labuan Bajo.

Translator: Tri, Kenzu
Editor: Aditya Eko Sigit Wicaksono
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