Mount Merapi Emits Lava, Police Alerts 3,500 Personnel

Deputy Head of Polda DIY, Brigadier General Raden Slamet Santoso and Deputy Head of Polda DIY, Brigadier General Raden Slamet Santoso (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - The Yogyakarta Special Region Police deployed 3,500 personnel to strengthen preparedness to face the potential for the eruption of Mount Merapi and hydrometerological disasters in this area. This morning, Mount Merapi is known to have released lava as far as 700 meters.

"We have prepared around 3,500 personnel from the Police itself, consisting of the Sabhara and Traffic Unit," said Deputy Head of the Yogyakarta Regional Police, Brigadier General Raden Slamet Santoso, at Polda DIY, Baciro, Yogyakarta, as reported by Antara, Wednesday, November 11.

Besides being joined by the Yogyakarta Regional Police, the disaster preparedness ceremony led by the Governor of Yogyakarta, Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X, was also attended by the ranks of related agencies, namely the TNI, DIY BPBD, DIY National SAR Agency, DIY Social Service, and DIY PMI.

Santoso said that the deployed personnel will be used from before a disaster, when a disaster occurs, to post-disaster.

Regarding the preparedness to face the eruption of Mount Merapi, they will be placed in a number of points blocking the route of residents who will go up and down on the slopes of the mountain which is now on alert status. "Then we also put personnel in evacuation places for refugees," he said.

In addition, Polda DIY also places personnel on the ascending and descending routes of the Merapi area, specifically to regulate traffic flow.

"We will also carry out patrols against abandoned houses or residences so that there is no theft," he said.

Sultan HB X hopes that all staff involved can play an active role in the context of dealing with natural disasters in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic by optimizing all available resources, both personnel and facilities and infrastructure.

He also emphasized that all related parties prepare all required administration related to natural disaster management readiness.

"Prepare all the facilities and infrastructure as well as the form of a Core and Reserve Task Force that can be moved to the disaster area at any time by implementing health protocols," he said.