UN AGENCIES SUPPORTING GOVERNMENT OF INDONESIA IN RESPONSE TO JAVA QUAKE

NEW YORK, 1 June (OCHA) -- Six days after the destructive earthquake, which struck Yogyakarta on the island of Java in Indonesia, the Government reports that the death toll has risen to over 6,300 people.

Measuring 6.2 on the Richter scale, the earthquake resulted in the damage or destruction of more than 105,000 homes, 269 schools, 49 kilometres of roads and bridges, 302 Government buildings and 284 religious buildings.

The United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) team has now established a presence at the now open Yogyakarta Airport, to help coordinate relief supplies arriving from international donations.  The World Food Programme (WFP) completed its rapid foods need assessment on 30 May, which identified the sub-districts hit hardest by the quake.  WFP also reports that the price of basic foods like rice is reported to have increased in urban areas by 10 to 15 per cent since the quake struck -- an increase which will be hard on poor families, who lost their homes and assets in the quake.

Meanwhile, in Bantul, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has opened the first child-protection centre in the quake zone, which is the first of five to be opened this week in the Yogyakarta area.  The World Health Organization (WHO) continues to work with authorities to provide medical care to survivors, to acquire the right kinds of medicines and equipment, and to set up a disease surveillance system in the areas hit by Saturday’s earthquake.  WHO is also helping to manage incoming medical supplies at airports, to ensure that the right medicines and equipment are distributed to the right places.  It has noted shortages of specific medicines and supplies, including orthopaedic supplies, anaesthetics and antibiotics.  WHO is compiling a full list of necessary medicines, supplies and equipment, which will be constantly updated and distributed.

On 2 June, the United Nations will launch an earthquake response plan to support the urgent needs of over 100,000 people severely affected by the earthquake.  Over the next six months, United Nations agencies and their non-governmental partners will continue to work in support of the Government to provide assistance to the tens of thousands of survivors who need assistance.

For further information, please call:  Stephanie Bunker, OCHA-New York, +1 917 367 5126, mobile +1 917 892 1679; Kristen Knutson, OCHA-New York, +1 917 367 9262; Elisabeth Byrs, OCHA-Geneva, +41 22 917 2653, mobile, +41 79 473 4570.  OCHA press releases are available at http://ochaonline.un.org or www.reliefweb.int.

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For information media • not an official record