RESCUE WORK, MEDICAL RELIEF GET UNDERWAY ON PULAU NIAS

Confronted with a large number of casualties and hampered by poor infrastructure, the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) team is carrying out what seems to be an endless task of rescue and evacuation in the town of Gunung Sitoli on Pulau Nias.

The island was hit by an 8.7 magnitude earthquake, which devastated more than 80 per cent of the buildings in the town, and resulted in thousands of casualties.

The SAF medical team has set up a medical centre next to an airfield, and has been treating casualties since they arrived on Nias island on 30 Mar.

"It was very chaotic. When I touched down, a number of medical staff were already here, and they were stressed out from all the work that they have been doing," said Captain (CPT) Ng Geok Cheng, a nursing officer.

"When we saw that they were so busy, we rushed into the clinic and just started helping out," she added.

Most of the injuries the team treated were fractures caused by falling debris, but those with more serious wounds are evacuated to hospitals in Medan.

"It has been a tiring two days. The first group of medical personnel who started work has not slept since we landed," said the SAF's medical task force commander, Lieutenant-Colonel (LTC) (Dr) Steven Thng (left).

"There are a lot of casualties coming in. The priority is to stabilise them and fly them to Medan if necessary," he added.

The medical team is joined by representatives from the Singapore Red Cross and Mercy Relief, as well as personnel from international humanitarian aid groups.

Currently located in the same clinic with the International Medical Group from the United States, the SAF medical team is constantly approached by incoming non-government organisations (NGOs) to provide a clearer picture of the operations in Pulau Nias.

"We've got the specialists to deal with the injuries, and the pilots to evacuate the wounded. We are playing a very crucial role; not many organisations are able to manage as well as evacuate the wounded like we are doing," said LTC (Dr) Thng.

The SAF's medical team is expected to be in Indonesia for two weeks.

"Because of the recent tsunami, we knew what we had to bring and do," said CPT Ng. "We are able to respond in the quickest of speed."