Quake: SA ready to assist

2005-03-29 15:29

Johannesburg - President Thabo Mbeki extended South Africa's condolences to Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Tuesdayafter an earthquake that struck off the coast of Sumatra.

"Please rest assured that the thoughts and prayers of the government and peoples of South Africa are with your government, the peoples of Indonesia and in particular bereaved families during these trying times," the message said.

"South Africa stands ready to assist the government and peoples of Indonesia in whatever manner it can and within the limited resources at its disposal." Diplomatic staff in Indonesia were in constant contact with authorities there to determine if any South Africans were caught up in the aftermath of another massive earthquake, the department of foreign affairs said on Tuesday.

"At this stage we have not received any reports of South Africans (affected)," spokesperson Ronnie Mamoepa told Sapa.

The government had also not yet received a request for assistance.

"But as always we stand ready if any assistance is needed," he said.

Reports say that a quake measuring 8.7 on the Richter scale struck off the west coast of Sumatra, 320km south of the epicentre of the December 26 quake that caused a tsunami which killed an estimated 273 000 people.

Reports of deaths and injuries have been received from the nearby islands of Nias and Simeulue and countries as far afield as Madagascar have issued tsunami warnings, although the likelihood appears to have subsided.

Chief Harbour Master Eddie Bremner said the National Ports Authority was monitoring ports in South Africa for indications of tide rises.

Captain Bill Dernier, head of the SA Maritime Safety Authority, said a tsunami would not be a danger for vessels out at sea.

"During the last tsunami they reported a much bigger swell and picked up that there was something wrong with the current. They said it was not normal but they didn't experience big waves," he said, adding that a greater impact would be felt by moored vessels.

Meanwhile, travel agency True Blue in Cape Town, which organises surf trips, did not know of any South African surfers on Nias, a popular surfing spot.

"It's a big destination for the hard-core surfer," managing director Greg Bertish said.

"We haven't sent anyone out there but the surfers could go to Bali and Jakarta and then get a ferry to Nias."

Bertish said the local hotel had been forced to close because of the low tourist numbers, so the visiting surfers lodged with local families who lived in small beach houses.

"They are free spirits, they do their own thing," said Bertish, adding that Nias was the kind of place to visit "when you want to get away from everything. It's very beautiful."

He expressed sympathy for Nias residents saying: "It's not nice, they are very poor."

- SAPA