PORTALJABAR, DISTRICT. SUMEDANG - After the earthquake that occurred in Sumedang Regency yesterday, Acting Governor of West Java Bey Machmudin immediately visited the affected locations, Monday (1/1/2024).

One of those affected quite badly by the earthquake and the focus of treatment was the Sumedang Regional Hospital. Arriving at around 7 am, Bey immediately inspected several points of the regional hospital building which had experienced cracks due to an earthquake measuring 4.8 magnitude accompanied by a number of aftershocks.

A total of 108 patients have been evacuated and treated in the front yard of Sumedang Regional Hospital and 45 patients in the back yard. They are still being handled intensively. Bey said that patient safety and tranquility is a priority.

"We visited the Sumedang Regional Hospital, I saw that the treatment was good, the main thing was the patient's safety and calm, so they were moved first to a safe place, there were still patients inside but they were in a safe building," said Bey.

On behalf of the people and the West Java Provincial Government, Bey expressed his deep condolences and concerns regarding the earthquake that rocked Sumedang at the end of 2023.

His party is committed to handling it optimally and continuing to coordinate with the central and regional governments.

"On behalf of the community and the Government, we express our condolences and concern over the occurrence of this earthquake. Last night we immediately coordinated well with the Sumedang Regency Government, BNPB, BPBD, TNI, Polri and BMKG," he said.

The earthquake that rocked Sumedang on December 31 2023 occurred five times. However, after the third or peak earthquake (magnitude 4.8), the shaking gradually became smaller, reaching a magnitude of 2.

"Actually yesterday there were 5 earthquakes in Sumedang, but after the third earthquake the strength was lower, namely around 2 magnitudes, of course we hope that no more aftershocks will occur," hoped Bey.

As a result of the earthquake, it was reported that 138 houses were slightly damaged, 110 were seriously damaged, and 456 residents were displaced. There were no fatalities in this incident, but 11 people suffered minor injuries, 2 of whom were treated at Sumedang Regional Hospital and Santosa Bandung Hospital.

"Earlier, according to reports, there were 138 houses slightly damaged, 110 heavily damaged, and 456 refugees. There were no fatalities, only 11 people had minor injuries and 2 of them were treated at the Sumedang and Santosa Regional Hospitals in Bandung, the rest have returned to their homes. Bey said.

After reviewing the conditions at the Sumedang District Hospital, Bey then inspected the residential conditions of residents who were quite badly affected by the earthquake, specifically at Perum Babakan Hurip, Kotakaler Village, North Sumedang District. Bey greeted a number of residents who were taking refuge in a number of emergency tents.

Bey ensures that their condition is safe and all their logistical needs are met. Bey then symbolically handed over aid in the form of disaster funds, food and medicine to the Acting Regent of Sumedang, Herman Suryatman.

"We will continue to monitor and hope that the public will comply with the instructions of officers in the field," said Bey.

Meanwhile, regarding the twin tunnels on the Cisumdawu toll road which experienced cracks, Bey said he had conveyed this to the PUPR Ministry. There will be no closure of the Cisumdawu toll road section while the PUPR team checks the condition of the tunnel.

"We have reported it to PUPR and PUPR has sent a team to the location. According to PUPR it is still safe so there are no plans to close the Cisumdawu toll road," said Bey.

Acting Regent of Sumedang, Herman Suryatman, has today declared Sumedang to be in a disaster emergency response state.

"Today we have declared Sumedang to be in a disaster emergency response state, this is to make it easier to handle and provide budget support to help residents affected by disasters," said Herman.

The Sumedang Regency Regional Government has so far deployed a technical team for assessment in the three affected sub-districts, namely Cimalaka, North Sumedang and South Sumedang sub-districts.

"Hopefully today we can decide which houses can be re-occupied and which are unsafe, of course we will prepare representative evacuation sites," he said.

For emergency tents and public kitchens, his party has prepared them in several locations. Herman ensured that the handling of the earthquake impact would be handled optimally with the main priority being the safety of its citizens.

"We handle everything optimally and our priority is the safety of residents," he said.

Herman advised residents to remain calm because overall Sumedang is safe and under control. However, he asked residents to remain alert because at the same time floods and landslides could potentially occur.

"Currently Sumedang is safe and under control, remaining calm but alert because at the same time we are also faced with the potential for flood and landslide disasters," he appealed.