Indonesia Aid Efforts Delayed

Rescue efforts sputtered Friday against broken roads, fuel shortages and a legacy of mistrust between civilians and the government, leading to frustration among survivors of a massive earthquake that hit the remote island of Nias.

Many survivors complained that there was little to eat or drink. Some wore masks to cover the stench of decomposing, unburied bodies.

Relief work is limited to what can be moved by helicopter. The damage has made it impossible to move outside Gunungsitoli, the island’s largest town, on anything bigger than a motorcycle.

“The aid is so slow,” said Alwizaro Mendrofa, 35, a village chief, as he typed the names of survivors from his town on a borrowed typewriter in Gunungsitoli. “Yesterday I asked the district chief for some food and aid for my people, but the chief said he had to have data of how many refugees in my village, and how many houses were damaged.

“Bureaucracy is everything. Meanwhile, the people are starving,” he said.

At least 518 people died in the earthquake, according to the United Nations, though officials predict the number could rise to 1,300 as searchers reach more remote areas.

The damage has flattened homes and buildings across Nias and neighboring islands such as Simeulue, where at least 17 people were reported dead and some villages were destroyed. A fifth of Nias’ 100,000 people are reported to be without shelter and drinking water, said the International Organization for Migration.

Rescuers did report one bright spot this morning, however. They heard a man calling weakly for water from beneath the rubble, Associated Press reported.

Monday’s magnitude 8.7 quake, one of the strongest on record in 100 years, struck off the western coast of Sumatra island.

The rescue effort has been made easier by the relief operations begun after the tsunami caused by the huge temblor of Dec. 26. Hundreds of workers and large stockpiles of aid are already in the area, based in Banda Aceh, about 250 miles from the recent quake’s epicenter. They were able to reach the islands quickly.

The World Health Organization said it had enough medical staff on the ground to deal with the injured on Nias.

But it has proved harder to get heavy lifting equipment and emergency supplies to the island. There is still a shortage of helicopters. Bodies remain trapped in rubble and many islanders are digging with their bare hands.

The relief operation has been hampered by a bottleneck at the damaged local airport. Trucks loaded with supplies, including water and body bags, have been dispatched to the islands on boats. But stormy weather has slowed their passage, forcing at least two ferries to turn back.

“Even in normal conditions, Nias island has very limited transportation and communication access,” said Eddy Sofyan, an official with the government in North Sumatra province.

Sofyan said there was a desperate need for equipment to repair roads. Uprooted asphalt has cut off a main fuel depot. And heavy rains have added to the soup of mud and concrete, making routes all but impassable.

With roads blocked, the dead cannot be moved from temporary morgues to be buried. And many survivors, stricken by fear of aftershocks and possible tsunamis, have fled to higher ground, making it harder for aid workers to reach them.

Government officials insisted relief would reach survivors and appealed for patience.

Sofyan suggested that the islanders do not trust the government. “The people of Nias are suspicious that the aid will not be distributed evenly.”

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Special correspondent Tiba reported from Gunungsitoli and staff writer Wallace from Tokyo. Dinda Jouhana of The Times’ Jakarta Bureau contributed to this report.