Rush to save animals after deadly eruption in Indonesia Mt Semeru Environmental News

Surabaya, Indonesia – Dr. Sugeng Widodo has just finished his last shift working in the shadow of the dreaded Semeru mountain in Indonesia, an active volcano on the island of Java that exploded on Saturday night due to rain that collapsed its crater.

Since the eruption, a cloud of ash blown up 4 km (2.48 miles) and caused deadly volcanic eruptions, a veterinarian has volunteered at the site of the disaster, killing more than 30 people and killing dozens and leaving at least 3,000 others. displaced.

Widodo is the coordinator of the East Java II volunteer group of the Indonesian Veterinary Medical Association (IVMA) and has been helping and rescuing some of the most forgotten victims of the volcanic eruption: nearby animals and livestock.

Along with her small team of three or four other volunteers, veterinarians work from dawn to dusk with veterinary paramedics to evacuate and treat animals with burns, smoke inhalation and other injuries.

“I was in the village of Supiturang today. We evacuated 150 cows and 200 sheep, ”he told Al Jazeera.

“So far we have found 17 cows and 50 sheep dead. Some of the injured and unsaved animals were immediately sold by the owners. ”

The area around the volcano is known for two things: the sand mining industry and agriculture. The green land surrounds the mountain and the fertile volcanic land it creates is ideal for grazing greens, cows, goats and sheep.

‘This will be the day I die’

Marzuki Suganda, a 30-year-old truck driver at a local sand mine, told Al Jazeera that he knew almost all the dead and missing, many of whom were on the slopes of the mountain and were farmers who could not or would not. to leave their animals and escape in time.

Suganda, who was walking home from work on the day of the eruption from sand mining work, said the sky had turned dark before volcanic rocks flew through the air, hitting his head and back and falling to the ground. .

“I thought, ‘This is going to be the day I’m going to die.’

“Life and death appeared before my eyes.”

As he was looking for a place to shelter in the area, Suganda said he was not going anywhere because the falling debris had destroyed the houses, and he leaned over the side of the road and covered his head with the engine helmet and hands. The animals grazing on the side of the road were buried in thick ashes that flowed down to the villages around Semeru.

The eruption also destroyed Suganda’s house. Under the weight and heat of the volcanic ash, the tiles were shattered, and the roof of his house was replaced by a huge hole.

“My house is no longer livable. It traumatized me, ”he said.

Suganda, his wife and five-year-old daughter are sheltering in a nearby village with other neighbors in the neighborhood while they are permanently evacuated and awaiting relocation elsewhere. There are also 11 goats with displaced people who tried in vain to save the herd when the eruption began.

‘Everything is covered in ashes’

Some of the citizens who are sheltering with him have sold all the animals they were able to save because they can no longer care for them.

Suganda and Widodo said it was a way to buy it because the eruption was affected by the fact that residents and livestock traders in the surrounding neighborhoods were affected by the purchase of excess animals.

According to veterinarian Widodo, the biggest challenge now is to find enough fresh green for the animals that survived the disaster.

“Now everything is covered in ashes,” he said. “If the animals eat that, they’ll have respiratory infections and start coughing.”

Widodo said he and his colleagues are now working to prepare fresh herbs, supplements and medicines for injured and evacuated animals.

The green land surrounds the mountain and the fertile volcanic land it creates, and the greenery around Semeru is an ideal place to graze cows, goats and sheep. [Courtesy of Indonesian Veterinary Medical Association/Sugeng Widodo]

Although supplies are plentiful, due in part to a network fundraiser launched by the IVMA team, it is difficult to move food and medicine to the right places, as well as store grass and other vegetation to prevent it from rotting before eating.

“The affected area is unsafe because Mount Semeru is still active, so access to the affected sites is limited,” Al Jazeera, head of the National Disaster Management and Communication Data Center (BNPB) at the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), said. .

“We are trying to evacuate all the animals that are still alive.”

On Monday, Semeru exploded again, throwing smoke and ash into the sky and disrupting rescue work.

Still roaring

Semeru is one of at least 100 active volcanoes in Indonesia, located in the “Ring of Fire” of the Pacific Ocean, the intersection of tectonic plates that often cause seismic activity.

In addition to caring for the surviving animals, Widodo said there are other concerns about how to deal with the dead so as not to spread the disease after the eruption, as the animals will begin to decompose fairly quickly.

“One of the most urgent things we need to do today is clean up and count the number of dead animals that have started to rot,” Widodo said, adding that logistics have been difficult due to remote locations.

“These animals are near the summit of Semeru and many were in houses or cages that fell as a result of the eruption,” he said.

A few days after the eruption, Suganda ventured to her home to see if she could find and store some of her belongings, such as documents and jewelry.

He was barely able to open the door of his home due to volcanic mud about 40 cm (16 inches) deep in some places.

“I was able to find some important papers like thank God, school diplomas, and a home certificate. Even though they were covered in mud, I was able to save them. I am already aware of the condition of the house. What more can I do, it has been destroyed, ”he said.

As he looked at his mud-covered village, Suganda noticed the awful silence that had descended on the usual bustling community.

“The only things that are still alive are chickens and cats,” he said.