Jakarta (AsiaNews) - Dozens of people have died and hundreds are missing after a massive flood in Wassior, a remote desert area in West Papua. This morning, the Indonesian Ministry of Health has confirmed that so far there are 29 dead and 103 missing.
Getting aid to the affected area is an arduous task. Wassior is at least six hours by boat from the capital of the district, Manokwari. From Jakarta it takes 6-7 hours by plane to reach Manokwari, then another eight hours with a large boat (16 hours with small boats). Eitherway, Ratna, a doctor from Jakarta, in Manokwari on an official visit, confirmed to AsiaNews that the governor of West Papua has sent a rescue team on the ground. The Ministry of Health says that the majority of injured carry bone fractures.
Manokwari military sources report that there is no electricity in Wassior, the shops are closed and many areas flooded due to rain. (MH)