Latest devastation

The nation is grieving again as an earthquake and tsunami hit Central Sulawesi, while
reconstruction in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, the site of major earthquakes in August, has
barely begun. As of Sunday, nearly 840 people were found dead in the coastal town of Palu and
Donggala regency after an earthquake measuring 7.4 on the Richter scale struck on Friday
afternoon, with Donggala located closer to the epicenter.
The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency briefly “ended” a tsunami
warning, said its chief Dwikorita Karnawati, around the same time waves of around 1.5 meters
high had swept the coast. She cited a lack of sensors among suspected failures in the tsunami
warning system on the “K”-shaped island crisscrossed by at least two major faults.
On the popular Talise coast of Palu, the province’s capital, a festival was being held;
many participants, including athletes, are among the missing, along with guests of a few hotels
and a mall that collapsed.
Amid blackouts and disrupted communications, families are scrambling to search for
missing members. With aftershocks occurring, search and rescue operations were halted Sunday
morning while residents were warned against entering buildings. The sight of armed security
personnel raises worries of survivors being harmed if they are considered looters, with many
having begun to help themselves to ruined stores.
These merciless disasters are heightening, again, awareness of the precarious archipelago
on which we live among tectonic faults and active volcanoes. However, the painful lessons of
earlier disasters, including the December 2004 earthquake and tsunami of the Indian Ocean in
which Aceh was worst hit, is not reflected in our level of preparedness.
According to researchers, Central Sulawesi is the most prone in the country to tsunamis,
with the latest meaning that the area has seen at least 19 such occurrences since 1820. Though
the last similar disaster there was recorded in 1996, it was only with the Aceh and North
Sumatra tragedies that we learned the word “tsunami” all over again, while folk wisdom on what
to do in such disasters have largely faded from collective memory.
Disaster-related authorities have said public awareness campaigns on natural disasters
have continued for years, including in schools in Central Sulawesi. However, as evident in how
buildings collapsed and how they invite death and destruction with their close proximity to the
water — such as the beautiful “floating mosque” on Palu’s beach, which is now bobbing and
floating offshore — it seems leaders and city planners have repeated grave mistakes as in other
disaster-prone cities, whether or not they have building codes encompassing earthquake-resistant
standards.
Meanwhile, the general election campaign period kicked off last week. Political parties
from both camps have instantly geared up their volunteer groups for Palu and Donggala; images
of the aid adorned with party logos and their candidates’ pictures will vie for coverage among
the ruins. Given the seven-month campaign period ahead of the April 2019 elections, it is best to
cut this period short and instead focus on limited resources to alleviate the widespread suffering.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/academia/2018/10/01/latest-devastation.html#
 Bencana Baru-Baru Ini

Bangsa ini berduka lagi ketika gempa bumi dan tsunami melanda Sulawesi Tengah,
sementara rekonstruksi di Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat, lokasi gempa bumi besar pada bulan
Agustus, baru saja dimulai. Pada hari Minggu, hampir 840 orang ditemukan tewas di kota
pesisir Palu dan kabupaten Donggala setelah gempa berkekuatan 7,4 pada skala Richter yang
melanda pada Jumat sore. Kota Donggala terletak lebih dekat ke pusat gempa.
Badan Meteorologi, Klimatologi, dan Geofisika secara singkat "mengakhiri" peringatan
tsunami, kata pemimpinnya Dwikorita Karnawati, pada waktu yang sama saat gelombang sekitar
1,5 meter yang menyapu pantai. Dia mengutip kurangnya sensor di antara kegagalan yang
dicurigai dalam sistem peringatan tsunami di pulau berbentuk "K" yang disilang paling tidak
oleh dua kesalahan besar.
Di pantai Talise yang populer di Palu, ibu kota provinsi, sebuah festival diadakan;
banyak peserta, termasuk atlet, termasuk di antara yang hilang, bersama dengan tamu dari
beberapa hotel dan sebuah mal yang runtuh.
Di tengah pemadaman dan komunikasi yang terganggu, keluarga berebut mencari
anggota yang hilang. Dengan gempa susulan yang terjadi, operasi pencarian dan penyelamatan
dihentikan Minggu pagi ketika warga diperingatkan untuk memasuki gedung. Melihat personil
keamanan bersenjata menimbulkan kekhawatiran korban yang dirugikan jika mereka dianggap
penjarah, dengan banyak yang mulai membantu diri mereka sendiri untuk menghancurkan toko.
Bencana tanpa belas kasihan ini semakin memuncak. Sekali lagi, kesadaran akan
kepulauan tempat kita hidup yang terletak di antara lempeng tektonik dan gunung berapi aktif
harus ditingkatkan. Namun, pelajaran menyakitkan dari bencana sebelumnya, termasuk gempa
bumi dan tsunami Desember 2004 di Samudra Hindia di mana Aceh terkena dampak paling
parah, tidak tercermin dalam tingkat kesiapan kita.
Menurut peneliti, Sulawesi Tengah adalah lokasi yang paling rentan di negara itu
terhadap tsunami, dengan arti bahwa daerah tersebut telah mengalami setidaknya 19 kejadian
seperti itu sejak tahun 1820. Meskipun bencana serupa terakhir tercatat pada tahun 1996, hanya
pada saat bencana Aceh dan Tragedi Sumatra Utara kata “tsunami” baru kita ketahui, sementara
kearifan rakyat tentang apa yang harus dilakukan dalam bencana seperti itu sebagian besar telah
memudar dari ingatan kolektif.
Pihak berwenang yang terkait dengan bencana mengatakan bahwa kampanye kesadaran
masyarakat tentang bencana alam telah berlangsung selama bertahun-tahun, termasuk di
sekolah-sekolah di Sulawesi Tengah. Namun, sebagaimana terlihat bagaimana bangunan runtuh
dan bagaimana banyak korban jiwa dan kehancuran, “masjid terapung” yang indah di pantai
Palu, yang sekarang terombang-ambing dan mengambang lepas pantai. Tampaknya para
pemimpin dan perencana kota memiliki kesalahan besar yang berulang-ulang seperti di kota-
kota yang rawan bencana lainnya, terlepas dari apakah mereka memiliki kode bangunan yang
mencakup standar tahan gempa.
Sementara itu, periode kampanye pemilihan umum dimulai minggu lalu. Partai-partai
politik dari kedua kubu telah langsung mempersiapkan kelompok relawan mereka untuk Palu
dan Donggala; gambar-gambar bantuan yang dihiasi dengan logo pesta dan foto-foto kandidat
mereka akan bersaing untuk mendapatkan liputan di antara reruntuhan. Mengingat periode
kampanye tujuh bulan menjelang pemilihan April 2019, yang terbaik adalah memotong periode
pendek ini dan alih-alih fokus pada sumber daya yang terbatas untuk meringankan penderitaan
yang meluas.
 Text Analysis

Problem: The nation is grieving again as an earthquake and tsunami

hit Central Sulawesi, while reconstruction in Lombok,
West Nusa Tenggara, the site of major earthquakes in
August, has barely begun.

Causes: Indonesia is located at the confluence of three tectonic

plates that are prone to earthquakes and volcanic
eruptions.

Impact  The earthquake and tsunami caused material

losses due to damaging buildings and
infrastructure, and caused many casualties.
 On the popular Talise coast of Palu, the province’s
capital, a festival was being held; many
participants, including athletes, are among the
missing, along with guests of a few hotels and a
mall that collapsed.
 Amid blackouts and disrupted communications,
families are scrambling to search for missing
members.

My opinion as a student:
The earthquake and tsunami caused material losses and
caused many casualties. Therefore, we must increase
awareness of natural disasters. Knowledge of natural
disasters needs to be learned by students so that they are
ready to avoid natural disasters.

What should the government do?
 The government should give early warning before
the natural disasters happen.
 The government should provide assistance to
victims of natural disasters in Central Sulawesi.
 The government should repair damaged
infrastructure and build new house for victims
with earthquake-resistant standards.
Choice the best answer!

1. The nation is grieving again as an earthquake and tsunami hit Central Sulawesi, while
reconstruction in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, the site of major earthquakes in August,
has barely begun.
According to the text, we can conclude that . . . .
A. The nations feel benefited from the disaster.
B. Central Sulawesi is a safe place from earthquake and tsunami.
C. The reconstruction in Lombok has long been going on.
D. The earthquake in Lombok has occurred before the earthquake in Central Sulawesi.
E. The earthquake in Lombok and Central Sulawesi causes fatalities.

2. Which place is closest to the epicenter?

A. Palu
B. Donggala
C. Sigi
D. Lombok
E. Central Sulawesi

3. What is the main idea of paragraph 4?

A. The nation is grieving again as an earthquake and tsunami hit Central Sulawesi.
B. The impact of amid blackouts and disrupted communications.
C. Disaster-related authorities have said public awareness campaigns on natural
disasters have continued for years, including in schools in Central Sulawesi.
D. The general election campaign period kicked off last week.
E. The earthquake and tsunami caused material losses due to damaging buildings and
infrastructure, and caused many casualties.

4. According to paragraph 6, why is Central Sulawesi the most prone in the country to
tsunamis?
A. Central Sulawesi is located at the confluence of three tectonic plates.
B. There are many volcano eruption in Central Sulawesi.
C. Central Sulawesi has seen at least 19 such occurrences since 1820.
D. Because the last similar disaster there was recorded in 1996.
E. The general election campaign period kicked off last week.

5. “Disaster-related authorities have said public awareness campaigns on natural disasters

have continued for years, including in schools in Central Sulawesi.”
The underline word has similar meaning to . . . .