Survivors from the quake-damaged Indonesian city of Palu give a thumbs-up sign before the Royal New Zealand Air Force C-130 Hercules aircraft that evacuated them yesterday to Balikapapan. The safe destination was the port city of Balikpapan, but the NZDF had to drop off 10.6 tonnes of aid to Palu before leaving. The Indonesian authorities and locals at Palu and Balikpapan thanked the NZDF personnel for helping, Natapu said. "Our Hercules was one of the first two foreign aircraft to deliver aid to Palu and Indonesian soldiers cheered as we offloaded the supplies yesterday," Natapu said. Major General Tim Gall said the Hercules and a 14-member NZDF detachment would continue to help transport aid and emergency responders to Palu and evacuate displaced people.

Source: Otago Daily Times October 06, 2018 02:48 UTC