The Cianjur District authority in West Java decided to not extend the disaster response status a month after the 5.6-magnitude earthquake that struck the region in November.

According to Cianjur District Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) Head Fatah Rizal, the end of the disaster response status means that the authority could announce the start of the transition process to recovery on Wednesday (December 21).

“The government will be attentive to earthquake victims remaining at their refugee camps during the transition period, and all refugees’ needs will be fulfilled by the regional authority,” Rizal stated here, Tuesday.

During the transition period planned after a meeting with the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), residents, whose houses suffered minor damage, could return to their homes and resume their daily activities, the regional agency head remarked.

Meanwhile, residents whose houses suffered major damages would receive a family-size tent that they could set up close to their reconstructed home, so they could leave the refugee shelter, he noted.

“We hope the residents’ spirit would be restored by returning to their home and resuming their daily activities, those working in the fields could return to their field, and those who open a store can resume their business,” Rizal noted.

The government will continue to encourage residents whose houses suffered minor damages to return home, he affirmed.

“We will enhance our efforts to encourage residents to resume their daily activities and no longer stay at refugee camps while relying on assistance. Residents must recover by themselves to bolster regional recovery,” the regional agency head remarked.

The Cianjur District authority recorded that 635 residents were killed in the November-21 earthquake. Moreover, the 5.6-magnitude earthquake also caused minor damage to 26,586 houses, medium damage to 16,068 houses, and major damage to 13,633 houses.

Source: Antara News