Apologies for no update yesterday. After we got Pete Morris on the boat for a full briefing on the situation in Banda Aceh and also working with MSF on the ground there, we thought it was actually a good idea if I went back into town with him and had a chat to a few of the MSF folks. This meant no update.

It also gave me a chance to look at their operation and see for myself what I had only heard as the circus that was Banda Aceh.

The drive into Banda Aceh was relatively uneventful, it was interesting seeing the contrasts in the devastaion. Some sections of coast were totally untouched and then two minutes down the road it scene resembled something similar to pictures I have seen of Hiroshima. I guess there were points that were more protected as the Tsumani hit, in the lee if you like, before it swamped and smashed the bays in its path.

Some areas were so badly hit, and so massive in size it seems very plausable to me now that there are still 2000 bodies being pulled out of the rubble every day. Small Indonesian flags mark the spots where bodies that have been found were still lying in the mess. The operation to shift the rubble will take years. The final death toll will never be known, there is no doubt about this.

The MSF office is a hive of activity and people are constantly coming and going. There seems to be a continual management meeting in progress and the one thing that strikes me more than anything is how tired people are. Some of them have been here since day 1 or 2 and it shows. Yet everyone is still staying focussed and there is not really any evidence I see of frayed tempers.

We also visit the warehouse which is 15 minutes by car from the office. Pete points out a mass grave to me just around the corner, the stench of decay is very strong here (as it still is in many places). The warehouse has a completely different vibe and very well sorted with a small MSF staff of three on the ground and about a dozen local guys with trucks. Their supply lines into Banda Aceh have mostly been moved and I am assured there is much less in stock now than there has been in the last two weeks. In that time they have taken possession of 30 cargo planes of supplies and most of this are now in the field. We check the cargo for the RW on Sunday to make sure there are no nasty surprises like unpalletised bags of cement.

Everything looks in order.

It seems that now that Meulaboh can be accessed by road (although still untried by MSF and prone to flooding which is regularly closing it, it is the rainy season), along with Sigli and Banda Aceh, that the main hub for distribution will move to Medan. This leaves Lamno as the only inaccessable spot for the MSF operations where sea is the only option. So we meet with Sabine, Head of Mission in Indonesia, Alex, HoM in Banda Aceh, Guy, one of the main logistics guys and most importantly, Meinie (sp), who is the MSF Operations Director. They are all extremely grateful for the work we have done for them up until now, and are happy with the organisational relationship.

But one thing they do not have much experience of, is how to use ships, and in a situation like this where the disaster has resulted from a catastrophic sea movement in a remote area, ships are essential in aid relief and humanitarian effort. So this is all quite new to them. I think it was good to go in and talk to them, and the decision will be made in the next two days, maximum about our further workplan. We hope it is in the positive, it is good to support their work, and we are working well together.

So after a night at one of their houses in Banda Aceh getting bitten by mosquitoes its back to the ship at 0600. Usual story at Krueng Raya, kind of crazy negotiations about who can go to the quayside first and load or unload, with a bunch of guys who all have different stories. Now there seem to be five Harbourmasters, it started off with one when we first used this port. It is becoming much busier here now than we we first arrived. But we slip in at 9.30 after an unexpected car carrier (88 cars for Banda Aceh), unload the contents of the three trucks on board and we are out of there by around 1200.

While we were finishing unloading, who should roll in but Sumber Rejeki, the IDEP boat who have been helping out delivering mostly food aid in Calang, so I finally get to meet Sam Shultz, who I've been trying to track down for about ten days. He's also one very tired man. We give him a couple of UHFs we bought from Singapore and get off the wharf so that he can get in and get loaded again, then get back to Calang.

Also get a call from Madeleine over in Malaysia and she informs me that Sean Paquetto, the yacht just South of Kruengraba, currently looking after 2000IDPs on their own, desperately need mosquito nets, malaria medication, water and a Sat Phone. It's too late for us to help with a drop off because we are just pulling away from the wharf, but with a bit of luck Pete can, either through Sumber Rejeki or even by road....almost

We will be in Lamno first light and ready to unload. The MSF base there has hopefully sorted the fishing boats to start early.....we shall see, the first couple of hours always seem to be where we have to secure them properly.

Cheers,
Rob