Visiting South Kalimantan Flood Refugees, Coordinating Minister For PMK Promises To Send Swab Equipment, Touching On Environmental Resilience

Coordinating Minister for PMK Muhadjir Effendy visits South Kalimantan flood victims (DOK. Humas Kemenko PMK)

BANJARBARU - Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture (Menko PMK) Muhadjir Effendy visited flood victims in South Kalimantan (Kalsel). Muhadjir said that the large floods that occurred in South Kalimantan (South Kalimantan) were the impact of the natural phenomenon of La Nina.

The phenomenon of weather anomalies that often cause hydrometeorological disasters is common in Indonesia. However, the Coordinating Minister for PMK said, South Kalimantan was one of the areas that was not predicted to experience the impact of La Nina.

"As far as I remember, South Kalimantan was one of the areas that was not expected to face the impact of this La Nina storm. But our name was allowed to predict, we could make efforts, but in the end God is the one who determines," said Muhadjir at the refugee camp quoted in a written statement received by VOI, Thursday, January 21.

Large floods in 11 regencies and cities in South Kalimantan submerged approximately 87,765 houses. The water immersion was 2 meters high and caused 74,863 people to flee, and 21 people died.

Many infrastructure facilities were also damaged due to flooding, such as broken bridges, broken embankments, broken Trans Kalimantan roads, and many schools and houses of worship were damaged.

Muhadjir said the flood disaster was a sign that South Kalimantan's environmental resilience was still weak. According to him, if environmental resilience is strong, the La Nina phenomenon will not cause a severe disaster.

Therefore, continued Muhadjir, policy makers must really make some basic corrections to the problem of environmental management, including land use.

Coordinating Minister for PMK Muhadjir Effendy visits South Kalimantan flood victims (DOK. Humas Kemenko PMK)

During his visit, Muhadjir saw that the condition of the refugee post at the Demang Lehman Stadium was quite crowded. Because of that, for the sake of the refugees' convenience, he asked that one or two families only fill one post room. If this was not possible, he asked everyone in the evacuation post to maintain health protocols.

In addition, he requested that every guest who came to do a rapid test, and that the refugees would be carried out a swab so that the refugee post did not become a COVID-19 cluster.

"I also ask that the rapid test be sent immediately. Then those who are going to the evacuation must be interviewed first. Later, the swab test kits will be sent. So that later when they enter the shelter, they will be sure they are completely healthy," he said.

At the evacuation post at Sungai Tabuk Health Center, the Coordinating Minister for PMK checks the adequacy of the food for the refugees. There she checked the soup kitchen, which was self-supporting for refugee mothers. Coordinating Minister Muhadjir appreciated the self-help carried out by refugee mothers.

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Coordinating Minister for PMK Muhadjir Effendy visits South Kalimantan flood victims (DOK. Humas Kemenko PMK)

To ease the burden on the post, Muhadjir said, later the central government will add a public kitchen which will be sent from outside the Province of South Kalimantan. The addition of public kitchens is also expected to help provide food sufficiency in all evacuation posts in South Kalimantan.

"Because of that I ask the Ministry of Social Affairs to immediately coordinate with the mobile public kitchens outside South Kalimantan to be drawn here. Especially from East Java so they can be brought here. There are seven units in East Java," he explained.

The Coordinating Minister for PMK also symbolically handed over assistance from the central government to the Provincial Government of South Kalimantan. The assistance was in the form of masks for adults and children, school supplies and reading books for children, assistance with sanitation tools, family kits (blankets, sarongs, towels and sanitary napkins), as well as food logistics assistance and safety equipment in the form of refugee tents, buoys and boats. emergency.