JAKARTA, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- Indonesian authorities have deployed helicopters to distribute relief aids to thousands of evacuees in nearly-isolated remote areas in Lombok island after a strong quake rattled the tourist destination, a government official said here on Monday.
Meanwhile, rescuers are still scrambling to retrieve victims of the quake from rubbles.
The move was carried out as land access to the affected areas in the mountainous territory was badly damaged, making it difficult for vehicles to pass through, said Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman of the national disaster management agency.
"The challenges in distribution of logistics are the damaged roads. Transport access to channel the aids to the evacuees in mountainous areas is poor, and the roads are narrow," Sutopo told Xinhua in a text message.
The spokesman said that military helicopters and the search and rescue office are deployed to bring medical staff, foods and medicine which are among the dire needs of the evacuees now.
Meanwhile, rescuers continued to scour and scramble to pull out the victims of the powerful quake in Lombok from the rubbles of wreckaged houses and buildings, said Sutopo.
The death toll topped 436 on Monday with another 1,353 people sustaining from injury, most of whom are from the North Lombok district which was hit the hardest, he said.
The jolts of the 7.0-magnitude quake forced 352, 793 residents to flee homes and take shelter on makeshift encampments, many of them located in remote and mountainous areas, said Sutopo.
Assessment of the downside risks of the quake persists in Lombok, Bali island and East Java province, he added.
The government would assist the residents in reconstructing devastated houses or buildings by providing financial aids, according to Sutopo.
"After this emergency relief period ended, it will be followed by reconstruction and rehabilitation," he added.
Indonesia has been frequently stricken by earthquakes as it is situated on a vulnerable quake-affected rim called "the Pacific Ring of Fire".
