President Prabowo Orders Rapid Aid Deployment to Flood-hit Sumatra Regions

TheIndonesia.co - Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has instructed government and military aides to coordinate the swift delivery of essential goods and items urgently needed by residents affected by floods sweeping through three provinces on Sumatra Island.

"We are sending communication equipment, inflatable boats, and power generators—items that are urgently needed to ensure efficient emergency measures," Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Pratikno remarked, as quoted by Antara.

Speaking in East Jakarta on Friday, he emphasized the government’s commitment to accelerating emergency measures amid the widespread flooding, assuring the public that aid distribution is already underway.

Today, the government deployed four transport planes comprising three Hercules and one A400 aircraft to deliver the aforementioned aid to airports and fields located near disaster-hit areas, including North Tapanuli, North Sumatra, and Banda Aceh, Aceh.

Pratikno highlighted that the central and local governments have been collaborating with the military and the police to address the impacts of the floods, which have been exacerbated by landslides, including through weather modification operations to facilitate evacuation and aid distribution.

He noted that Tropical Cyclone Senyar, to some extent, has affected disaster handling, although the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has reported it to be weakening.

"We are taking advantage of this development to conduct weather modifications, aiming to divert rainfall from land to the sea," the minister said.

Meanwhile, Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya underscored that the government has been striving to handle the disasters and deliver logistics for several days.

"Aid delivery has been ongoing since the past few days, involving military and civilian aircraft," he said, noting that the types of items being distributed have been adjusted to the actual needs of victims.

He cited as examples the ongoing delivery of 150 tents, 64 inflatable boats, power generators, and pieces of communication equipment.

"In fact, we have dispatched consignments of ready-to-eat meals and medicines, alongside medical teams from the military and the Health Ministry," Wijaya added.

He further stated that the central government has engaged with local leaders in Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra to gain a clear understanding of their most urgent needs.