JakartaPost-Nov 12, 2024
Authorities are preparing to build houses in safer locations for people affected by continuous eruptions of Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki in East Flores, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT). “There will be 1,100 houses ready to be built soon,” Public Housing and Settlements Minister Maruarar Sirait told a press conference at the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) on Tuesday. “Many of the evacuees [who will be relocated to safer places] are farmers. That’s why we are considering new locations not too far from their source of income,” Maruarar said, following a meeting led by Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka to scale up the ongoing disaster response. Maruarar did not disclose what locations were currently being weighed up for the relocation plan. But BNPB head Suharyanto said the possible locations were two parcels of land in Konga and Kobasoma villages in Titehena district, each 50 hectares in size. The government has been planning to permanently relocate all residents living within a 7-kilometer radius of the crater of the mountain since a major eruption earlier this month. More than 16,000 residents live in the nearest villages from the volcano, but the government is still calculating how many residents will be permanently relocated. The BNPB has recommended the government build 2,700 new houses for relocated families. Continuous eruptions and tremors have been ongoing since the major eruption on Nov. 3, forcing thousands to flee their homes for safety. A total of nine people have been killed, with 31 severely injured. Most of the victims were hit by volcanic rocks ejected from the crater of Lewotobi Laki-Laki. More than 11,500 people are currently taking refuge in government-built or self-organized shelters in various locations in East Flores and the neighboring Sikka regency. On Tuesday, at least a dozen eruptions were recorded by the Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Center (PVMBG), with one spewing volcanic ash as high as 9,000 meters above the summit. The danger zone radius has been expanded to 9 km from the summit of the mountain in the southwest and northwest sectors since Saturday noon following a series of eruptions earlier in the day. The volcanology agency advises residents to be prepared for the possibility of rain-induced lahar along rivers originating on the mountain’s slopes. Read more at: https://www.thejakartapost.com/indonesia/2024/11/12/government-to-build-1100-new-houses-for-lewotobi-displaced.html.
