Indonesians Return To Work After Another Tsunami
Komfie Manalo - All Headline News Foreign Correspondent Jakarta, Indonesia (AHN) - Nine days after two-meter high water slammed the south coast of Java, killing hundreds of people and displacing tens of thousands, residents in the area begin to pick up the pieces and return to work. Indonesian officials interviewed by Reuters said more than half of the estimated 45,000 people who were displaced by last week's tsunami have returned to their home. Health ministry officials said about 20,000 people remain in evacuation centers in the hills around Pangandaran, Indonesia. Indonesian Red Cross disaster response team chief, Rukman said, "The situation is beginning to become more conducive. They have started going to sea and to paddy fields to make ends meet." "There are two kinds of displaced people. Those who evacuated because their homes were damaged and those who moved because of their fear of another tsunami or earthquake. The situation is gradually improving, but is not 100 percent normal." At least 94 people were still missing after the tsunami brought death and destruction to a 300-km stretch of Java's south coast and killed at least 656 people. On Monday, some 40 children returned to school in Pangandaran, a small fraction of the nearly 260 children enrolled. They were encouraged by their teacher to sing songs to relieve stress and given a lesson on how to recognize a future tsunami.
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