Stress might push mudflow victims to limit

A psychiatrist has warned stress could accelerate any minor psychological problems experienced by people displaced from their homes for over a month by hot mudflow in Porong, Sidoarjo in East Java, making them like ticking time bombs.

Psychiatrist Nalini Agung said that although physically unnoticeable, the psychological burden on the 6,000 residents of the four villages affected by the mudflow could create new and unexpected problems, making not only physical but psychological approaches to the situation crucial.

"Since the victims are faced with uncertainties, they are feeling distressed. This could gradually trigger post-traumatic stress disorder and cause new problems," Nalini told The Jakarta Post.

Efforts are being made to stop the rush of hot mud, which has been coming from a gas drilling site owned by PT Lapindo Brantas Inc. since May 29, but on Tuesday, the problem remained.

Over a month after the problem started, the expert from Dr. Soetomo hospital in Surabaya said many residents were experiencing a growing depression. Some are jobless, while others have lost their homes or cherished possessions.

"Although the process is different, not sudden like the loss experienced by quake survivors in Yogyakarta and Central Java, these uncertainties can trigger a time bomb," said the psychiatrist who treated "face-off" surgery patient from Surabaya, Lisa.

She said it was generally two to three months before the stress disorder really took its toll on people.

"New problems most likely show up entering the third month, and have a tendency of spreading among the evacuees," she said.

She advised that those responsible for dealing with the hot mudflow provide effective solutions, such as by immediately relocating victims, replacing their rice fields and finding them work.

"Compensation or assistance in the form of cash is not a solution. It should be in the form of things and assets equivalent to their losses," she said.

Lapindo has promised to compensate residents for their suffering, as well as compensate workers who could not work because their companies were affected by the mudflow.

Tri Santoso, the head of the Prosperous Justice Party disaster mitigation post at Pasar Baru Porong market, where displaced people are sheltering, shares similar fears. After they had been staying at the market for almost 20 days, he said, people's moods were black.

"They're complaining about their situation, what's going to happen to their jobs and what they'll do when it's all over," he told the Post.

He said volunteers from the party were providing medical treatment and entertainment for the displaced people as well as teaching them useful skills. "We want to create room for dialog to help them find a solution to their problems as well as hold educational activities for children," Tri said.

Volunteers from other groups, such as universities, political parties and non-governmental organizations, are doing similar work at the shelters.

Meanwhile, after almost a month of gathering documents and interrogating dozens of witnesses, East Java Police issued a statement Tuesday holding six people responsible for the catastrophic sludge in Sidoarjo.

"We have named six suspects in the case," said East Java Police chief Insp. Gen. Herman Suryadi Sumawireja.

He declined to name the suspects, only saying two are employees of the owner of gas drilling site PT Lapindo Brantas, identified only as WH and ES, and the four others are officials from PT Medici Citra Nusantara, Lapindo's subcontractor.

However, he said, the number of suspects might increase in the coming days.