Sulawesi Tsunami

On Friday, September 28, 2018, a 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia. Several hours later, a tsunami followed reaching six meters in height. The quake and subsequent tsunami left more than 2000 people confirmed dead and several thousand more injured. There are were at least 70,000 people displaced across 24 different sites at the height of the response. 

A 14-day state of emergency was declared in Sulawesi as officials worked to rescue thousands feared injured or dead. 

Within hours, Airlink had deployed an ADRA International staff member to Sulawesi to provide surge support for the ADRA Indonesia team already in place. 

In the days that followed, Airlink also deployed four personnel from NetHope to provide emergency telecommunications support to those displaced and the broader humanitarian community.

Airlink also supported World Central Kitchen in their response to the Palu tsunami. With assistance from United Airlines, Airlink was able to facilitate transportation for a World Central Kitchen team member into the region as the airports in Indonesia continue to be set up for international aid. The #ChefsForIndonesia project generated meals for more than 118,000 people.

Beyond Airlink’s work as a transportation facilitator, the organization also worked to disseminate information to its nonprofit and airline network to aid in decision-making regarding deployment of staff and in-kind resources.