Risking Their Lives for Humanitarian Aid

After dawn on Wednesday (8/1/2020), Yuni, Titin and Yanti, together with six other residents left their homes in Pasir Walang I village, Cisarua subdistrict in Sukajaya district, Bogor regency, to get humanitarian aid.

KOMPAS/RONY ARIYANTO NUGROHO

Riding motorbikes, residents and volunteers transport aid to Babakan, Harkat Jaya village, Sukajaya, Bogor, when road access began to open following landslides, on Thursday (9/1//2020). Although not entirely, a number of points became accessible. The opening of this access was welcomed enthusiastically by residents, volunteers and distributors of aid, making evacuation and distribution of aid easier.

At around 8 a.m. they arrived in Pasir Kupa village, Harkatjaya subdistrict, Sukajaya district. After waiting, at 10:30 a.m., they finally got the aid. However, they could not get what they needed such as food, candles and medicine because of the assistance available there was quite limited. They only brought some clothes.

That morning, not many people had come to Pasir Kupa village. After packing up and putting the clothes into the sacks, they returned to their village via the Kiara Pandak route.

That morning the sky was dark. At around 11 a.m. rain started pouring. None of them brought coats or umbrellas to protect them from the rain. They only put sacks containing the clothes on their heads. The women had to walk slowly as the ascending path was slippery due the mud from the avalanche.

God willing, we will be safe.

Floods and landslides that occurred at a number of locations in the area began on Jan. 1, isolating a number of villages, including Cisarua village. At one location of the landslide, the women had to stop because there was heavy equipment dredging the ground to open the road.

An officer approached them and urged them not to continue the journey because the road could not yet be traversed. There was thick mud and the condition of the cliff where the landslides occurred was still unstable.

Due to heavy rain, the dredging of the mud must be stopped temporarily. If it continued, it would be dangerous and the heavy machinery would be easily damaged. The women waited at least 15 minutes to assess the situation and to decide whether they would return to Harkatjaya village or continue their trip. "Bismillah [in the name of God], let\'s continue the journey. God willing, we will be safe, "said Yuni and agreed to by other residents.

KOMPAS/RONY ARIYANTO NUGROHO

Residents of some villages, whose roads are inaccessible due to landslides, walk with aid from the Harkat Jaya Village Office, Sukajaya district, Bogor regency, West Java, Wednesday (8/1/2020). It took hours for them to get there from their village. There is no vehicle access to distribute aid to a number of villages.

They were worried. The rocky road was covered by mud and was very slippery to walk on. But they tried to accelerate their pace to pass the

landslide area. Some of the soil began to descend toward the group of women. After half an hour, they managed to pass the landslide area. Titin looked exhausted. Her face turned red and her breath was gasping, and her steps slowed, while six other women were no longer in sight.

Due to the bad condition of the road and the heavy sack she had to carry, she had to stop for break. Yanti and Yuni stopped their steps when they saw Titin. The group of the women was finally split in two.

Yanti, Yuni, and Titin were far behind. At the next landslide location, a pile of wet soil with about 130 cm height blocked the way of the women. At the time, Yanti had difficulty to pass the mud. Her flip-flop sandal was broken when she tried to pull out her right foot from the mud.

Likewise with Titin, hers right boots were trapped and could not be pulled out from the pile of soil. She removed the booth from her feet and then with all his strength, she pulled it with her hands.

"We have been isolated for seven days. The aid is very limited because the road was cut off, while our food supplies are running low, this assistance is not enough, "said Yuni after arriving back at Kampung Pasir Walang I after traveling for about two hours.

KOMPAS/RONY ARIYANTO NUGROHO

Residents of some villages, whose roads are inaccessible due to landslides, walk with aid from the Harkat Jaya Village Office, Sukajaya district, Bogor regency, West Java, Wednesday (8/1/2020). It took hours for them to get there from their village. There is no vehicle access to distribute aid to a number of villages.

Volunteers

A number of volunteers came to provide assistance to residents who were still isolated. Deden ,25, and his friend were among those who came to the Adat Urug village. It took about an hour from the Pasir Walang I village to reach the the Adat Urug village, one of areas affected by floods and landslides.

There were at least 151 people in the village. Until Thursday (9/1) afternoon, the Binamarga community development office of the Bogor regency had opened access to nine of 16 locations hit by the landslides.

The workers were still trying to open the road in the 10th and 11th landslide locations. However, the works became more difficult due to a heavy rain which occurred since Thursday afternoon. As a result, landslides occurred again in at least 14 more locations.

"Logistics stock is still lacking in the Adat Urug Village. There were some other volunteers who sent logistics, but we had to sort them out because Abah Ukat [the head of the village] was very selective in receiving the assistance. The aid must be adjusted to the needs of villagers, "Deden said.

Abah Ukat did not want to be like other villages which became slum because there was too much ineffective aid. Clothes brought by volunteers and rubbish piled up in the village.

KOMPAS/RONY ARIYANTO NUGROHO

A motorcyclist gets stuck on a muddy road as he transports aid from the Harkat Jaya Village Office, Sukajaya district, Bogor regency, West Java, on Wednesday (8/1/2020). Vehicle access to a number of villages has not yet been opened.

Other volunteers, Iwan ,50, and Abimanyu ,50, from the Bogor police community, which opened the Parigi route to the Pasir Kupa village in the Harkatjaya subdistrict. Assisted by residents with improvised equipment, they opened a path that was covered by piles of soil.

Residents who passed the road to the Pasir Kupa village should be very careful because it is hollow, slippery and muddy. After delivering basic needs to the Adat Urug village, they went to the Babakan village. In this village they met sick people and a pregnant woman who had to be helped immediately.

Through a steep road and partly still covered by landslides, they took the mother and her three small children to flee .

"They take the mother and her three children to the nearest safe village for about 3.5 hours passing a steep terrain. Several times we had to pass through mud as high as 60 cm, and even some of us had plunged into mud puddles as high as one meter, "Abimanyu said.

These volunteers will still stay in the disaster location. Together with the victims, they risk their lives to help open the access to the villages isolated by the disaster.