Haluan Malaysia sends a relief team to Aceh with RM10,000 in supplies, as volunteers describe a critical situation worse than the 2004 tsunami.
GEORGE TOWN: Pertubuhan Himpunan Lepasan Institusi Pendidikan Malaysia (Haluan Malaysia) has dispatched its first volunteer team to provide aid to flood victims in Aceh, Indonesia.
The team, led by the NGO’s Welfare and Humanitarian Cluster vice president Dr Baharudin Suri, departed from Penang International Airport today carrying essential food supplies and medicines.
Haluan Malaysia Welfare Bureau head Abdul Halim Kudri said three volunteers would first assess the situation on the ground before providing emergency assistance.
“We have been informed that the floods have claimed over 1,000 lives, with many others still missing,” he said at the airport today.
He said the initial focus would be on distributing food supplies and medical aid, with a lorry and two cars transporting essential goods worth about RM10,000.
“It is learnt that food supplies in the area have run out, and we hope our volunteers and the aid they bring can provide some relief,” Abdul Halim added.
The volunteer team will operate from the Haluan Barakah Learning Centre in PD Jaya, Aceh, which survived the disaster but is surrounded by heavily affected communities.
Abdul Halim said Haluan Malaysia expects to send between 40 and 50 volunteers in stages to help, noting the NGO had sent 14 teams during the 2004 tsunami.
Penang Haluan Malaysia advisor Ahmad Shukri Nordin said the situation in Aceh remains critical, with reports indicating more victims have died from starvation than the initial flood impact.
“The destruction this time is worse than what we witnessed during the tsunami,” he said, calling on Malaysians to channel funds through Haluan Malaysia.
Volunteer Marwansyah Ismail, 49, described the situation as a mud flood that had buried numerous villages under metres of thick mud.
He said several of his relatives in Timang Gajah, Bener Meriah, have remained out of contact since the disaster struck.
“We can only pray and hope that they can be found soon,” said Marwansyah, who has lived in Penang for 24 years.
He said his family in Aceh reported the situation was still critical, with authorities urging the disaster be declared a national and international emergency.
