Govt starts building temporary houses for Merapi refugees

Erwida Maulia, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Mon, 11/22/2010 9:20 PM

National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) secretary Fatchul Hadi says the government has kicked off the construction of 300 temporary housing units for people displaced by the Mount Merapi eruptions.

The temporary houses would be prioritized for those living nearest to the volcano’s crater as their residences were the most severely damaged by the ongoing volcanic eruptions, Fatchul said.

“We’ve laid the first stones, and will begin by constructing 300 units. We’re still monitoring the activities of Merapi and may eventually build between 3,000 and 5,000 units,” he told a press conference at the Vice Presidential Office after a Cabinet meeting discussing rehabilitation and reconstruction plans in three disaster-struck areas: Wasior in West Papua, Mentawai in West Sumatra and areas surrounding Mount Merapi in Yogyakarta and Central Java.

Fatchul said it could not be decided yet exactly how many temporary houses would be built to accommodate people displaced by the volcanic eruptions because volatile seismic activity continues to persist.

Secretary to the Coordinating Minister for People’s Welfare Indroyono Soesilo said the number of Merapi refugees had now declined to 200,000 from a peak of  400,000 two weeks ago