Moving Fast, the PPA ERT Helps with Everything from Evacuation to Trauma Healing for Disaster Victims in Lahat and Natuna

PT Putra Perkasa Abadi (PPA) sent its Emergency Response Team (ERT) to the landslide disaster on Serasan Island, Natuna, Riau Islands, on Sunday (12/3).

The team immediately coordinated and formed a group of 5 personnel: 1 leader, 2 rescue officers and 2 medics. The team then coordinated with the Natuna and Pontianak SAR offices to deliver the equipment needed, such as a full-set Alcon, hand sprayers, decontamination materials and other evacuation equipment.

The team also distributed logistical supplies to displaced victims: 2,000 packets of instant noodles, 20 sacks of rice, 100kg of sugar and more. Beyond logistics, the PPA ERT also carried out search & rescue, opened health services, and provided trauma healing for victims.

Over two days (13–14 March 2023) of search & rescue operations, the PPA ERT, under ESDM Siaga Bencana and together with Basarnas, the military and police, found 3 landslide victims in Pangkalan Kampung Genting Village, Natuna.

According to Natuna SAR Post data of 13 March 2023, the death toll reached 54 including 6 still missing. With 1 missing victim found by the PPA ERT today (14/3), 5 remain unaccounted for. In total 1,863 residents are displaced across 6 shelter locations.

The PPA ERT Responds Swiftly to Victims of the Serasan Natuna Landslide

At the same time, the PPA ERT also deployed personnel to the flash floods that struck 6 districts in Lahat and Muara Enim Regencies, South Sumatra, on Thursday (9/3).

The PPA ERT — 3 search and rescue officers, 1 paramedic and 1 logistics officer — sent water safety equipment including life vests, ring buoys and rope; medical equipment, responder bags and medicines; LV support transport; and staple food aid.

Beyond logistics, the PPA ERT worked quickly and effectively with residents and the Muara Enim police to clear the debris and mud covering roads and homes, distributed medical aid and opened a health post.

The PPA ERT also provided education and guidance to residents living near the river about the danger of further flooding, installed safety lines on affected bridges, and ran trauma healing sessions for children affected by the flash floods caused by the Lematang River overflowing.

The flash floods, triggered by the Asian Monsoon winds, cut bridges linking urban villages and villages, affected 120 houses and 176 households, and destroyed the harvest across 40 hectares of residents' rice fields.

"PPA turut prihatin dan berharap warga terdampak bencana banjir dapat segera bangkit dan pulih kembali. Semoga bantuan dari PPA sebagai bentuk kepedulian perusahaan bisa bermanfaat," said PPA Director R Teguh Saptosubroto on Monday (13/3).

Not the First Time

The PPA ERT has been active in post-disaster humanitarian missions in Indonesia since 2018. It has gone into the field 20 times, arriving within 24 hours of a disaster at the latest. The PPA ERT has also extended its humanitarian reach internationally. It opened 2023 by directly distributing logistical aid, opening a public kitchen and running trauma healing sessions with victims of the magnitude 7.8 earthquake in Türkiye that killed 44,000 people.

The PPA ERT's competence and skill set are also demonstrated by its many wins in national ERT competitions such as the Indonesia Fire & Rescue Challenge and the Indonesia Fire & Rescue Competition.

May the PPA ERT's presence at disaster sites help and ease the burden of victims, and may the ERT members on duty always be granted health and safety as they carry out their humanitarian missions.