Mount Anak Krakatau Active, Puan asks the Government to increase national preparedness

Speaker of the House of Representatives Puan Maharani (ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Speaker of the House of Representatives Puan Maharani asked the Government to increase national preparedness following the reactivation of Mount Anak Krakatau in the Sunda Strait. According to Puan, the increased activity of Mount Anak Krakatau is a reminder that Indonesia as a country in the world's fire ring area must continue to strengthen the overall disaster mitigation system.

"National preparedness in disasters must be improved in the face of increased activity at Mount Anak Krakatau. Community safety must be a priority," Puan told reporters, Tuesday, July 14.

"Geological disaster threats cannot be prevented, but their impact can be minimized if all national preparedness systems work quickly, integrated, and based on scientific information," he continued.

The former Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs also emphasized that the Government needs to make the increase in the activity of Mount Anak Krakatau as a momentum to evaluate national readiness in facing the potential of volcanic disasters, especially in the coastal area of the Sunda Strait which has a history of high vulnerability. He also assessed that the Government needs to conduct periodic evaluations of the effectiveness of coordination between institutions so that each BMKG warning really leads to actions that can reduce risks in the field.

"Evaluation not only includes monitoring volcanic activity, but also the effectiveness of early warning systems, the readiness of evacuation routes, inter-agency coordination. the capacity of local governments, to the readiness of the community in responding to disaster information," he explained.

According to Puan, the government also needs to ensure that official information from the Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG), BMKG, National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), and local governments is delivered quickly, consistently, and easily understood by the public. This is so that it does not cause panic or room for the spread of unverified information.

Puan added that the speed of information delivery is an important part of community protection, especially for residents living in coastal areas and shipping activity participants around the Sunda Strait. He also assessed that strengthening disaster mitigation must be a long-term investment.

Puan also ensured that the DPR RI would monitor the Government's readiness to face the threat of volcanic disasters due to the activity of Mount Anak Krakatau.

"Especially in terms of strengthening the volcanic monitoring system, modernization of early warning technology, increasing the capacity of local governments, and disaster education to the community, it is part of the national agenda in building Indonesia's disaster resilience," he concluded.

As is known, the volcanic activity of Mount Anak Krakatau has increased and is now at Level III Status (Alert). The increased activity of Mount Anak Krakatau (GAK) in recent days has also re-emerged people's concerns about the potential for a tsunami, as was the case in the Sunda Strait in 2018.