JAKARTA - A number of soldiers from the Navy's Marine Corps on Monday prepared land for the construction of temporary housing that will be occupied by refugees in Batang Toru District, South Tapanuli Regency, North Sumatra.
The head of the TNI AL Information Service, First Admiral TNI Tunggul, explained that the land opening in Batang Toru was carried out by the soldiers of the Zeni Battalion (Yonzeni) 1 Marine with the help of heavy equipment.
"Using heavy equipment and human resources, Yonzeni 1 Marine soldiers cleaned the trees, as well as the debris that covered the area of temporary housing construction (huntara). In addition, Yonzeni 1 Marine soldiers also leveled the land to ensure the location is safe and suitable for occupation later," said Tunggul as quoted by ANTARA, Monday, January 5.
The commander of the Marine Battalion Zeni 1, Lieutenant Colonel Zainal, as the Commander of the Rapid Disaster Response Force Task Force, explained that the land clearing activity was part of the humanitarian task and TNI's contribution to helping the government accelerate post-disaster recovery from flash floods and landslides in North Sumatra.
"We are trying our best to make the construction of the huntara can be implemented immediately so that the community can return to have a safe and comfortable place to live," said Zainal.
President Prabowo Subianto at several meetings regarding the handling of the impact of flash floods and landslides in Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra, has instructed his staff to accelerate the construction of temporary and permanent housing for refugees so that they no longer live in tents and evacuation posts.
In a coordination meeting in Aceh Tamiang, one of the districts affected by flash floods in Aceh, on January 1, 2026, President Prabowo received reports from his staff regarding the construction of housing for refugees, including the construction of 15,000 temporary housing units carried out by Danantara.
Of the 15,000 units built by Danantara, 12,000 units will be built in Aceh, more than 500 units in West Sumatra, and around 2,000 units in North Sumatra.
President Prabowo, before the meeting at the beginning of 2026, also directly reviewed the construction of the Danantara residential house, which was intended for refugees in Aceh Tamiang.
The President then instructed Danantara to pay attention to the comfort of the residence. For example, by adding coating material on the roof so that the residence is not too hot.
"The solution does not have to be expensive, it can be from local materials or textiles to coat the zinc so that it is not hot. This is a form of creativity of people in the field," said Prabowo to Danantara and BUMN-BUMN construction sectors that built Danantara's residential houses during the meeting.
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