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Hopes fade of finding survivorsIndonesian disaster death toll surpasses 5,800
SPECIAL REPORT
• Gallery: People, buildings devastated
• Quake relief: Where to donate
• Map: Where the quake hit
• Special Report: Disaster in Java
QUICKVOTEYOUR E-MAIL ALERTSJAKARTA, Indonesia (CNN) -- The death toll from the Indonesian earthquake has risen above 5,800 as hopes fade of finding more survivors. International aid is beginning to stream into Java island, where the 6.3-magnitude quake struck just before 6 a.m. last Saturday (7 p.m. ET Friday). Aid workers say survivors are in desperate need of emergency hospital care and tents for shelter, with some waiting days for help. The head of an emergency response team from Malaysia told The Associated Press he didn't expect to find more bodies three days after the quake struck. "The collapsed homes were all so small that anyone who was trapped would have been extracted by their family members," Supt. Abdul Aziz Ahmad told AP. Indonesia's Social Affairs Ministry raised the death toll to 5,846 on Wednesday. The United States, meanwhile, has increased its aid commitment to $5 million. The U.S. military has sent four C-130 flights, which have taken 45 U.S. military personnel -- including part of a trauma-surgery unit -- to Yogyakarta, the former royal capital of Java, which is about 25 kilometers (16 miles) from the 6.3 magnitude quake's epicenter. The rest of the unit was to arrive Tuesday, when construction on a field hospital was to begin. Indonesia's president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, visited hard-hit towns on Tuesday to review relief efforts and promised to improve the distribution of aid. Thousands of survivors are believed to be in need of medical care after the early morning quake, which destroyed houses as residents slept. The UN World Food Program said 20,000 people were in dire need of help. About 1,700 people lay scattered across the floors of Yogyakarta's main hospital, which has beds for about 750 patients, and doctors reported running short of critical drugs. "There's also a growing shortage of basic medical supplies -- antibiotics, bandages -- as the hospital becomes more and more crowded," aid worker Susan Treadwell said. Several hospitals have been destroyed and many more overwhelmed. A spokesman for the president said getting field hospitals and tents to those most in need was the priority, and the challenge was to move quickly. "We are making progress day by day," presidential spokesman Dino Djalal told CNN Tuesday, adding they had discovered new areas where aid was needed. Heavy rain and damaged roads have hindered efforts to help survivors, forcing thousands of those left homeless to forage for food and shelter. Rescuers are being hampered by the rain, power outages and the closure of a local airport. "We have 300 families in this village and have only gotten two sacks of rice," Lastri, 27, holding a 5-month-old, told The Associated Press. "It's not enough." (Watch cries for help and roads of rubble -- 2:21) Many of the homeless people remained near their damaged residences in makeshift shelters. About 15 small camps housing between 100-200 people each were established near public buildings, the U.N. children's agency, UNICEF, said in a press release. (Watch victims treated without anesthesia -- 2:19) U.N. agencies and other groups met Monday in Switzerland and the world body is expected to issue a global emergency appeal for help. The international community has already pledged millions of dollars in response to the disaster, the latest in a series to blight Indonesia. But CNN's Dan Rivers, in Yogyakarta, said he has seen little evidence of aid having reached those in need. "A lot of the bodies have now been recovered, a lot of the injured have gone to the main centers, and people are beginning to look at getting food and supplies in," he said. Ring of fireSince the quake struck, there have been several hundred aftershocks. Indonesia sits on the Pacific basin's so-called "ring of fire," marked by heavy volcanic and tectonic activity. Scientists are worried about the impact of the quake on Mount Merapi, which experts and villagers have watched closely in the past few weeks. The nearby volcano has been rumbling for weeks, spewing out lava and hot gases. On Monday, the mountain spat out lava and hot clouds, sending debris four kilometers (2.5 miles) down its sides. Since Saturday's quake, the volcano has spewed hot clouds an average of 150 times a day, compared to 50 times before, Subandriyo, chief of the Merapi volcanology and monitoring office who goes by one name, told the AP. The earthquake is the worst disaster in Indonesia since the December 26, 2004, magnitude-9 earthquake that triggered a tsunami, killing at least 131,029 people in Indonesia alone. Another earthquake on March 28, 2005, killed about 900 people off the western coast of Sumatra. Strained by the recent disasters, the world's largest archipelago nation -- home to the world's largest Muslim population -- has been forced to deal with the avian flu threat, with six more human cases of the H5N1 strain reported Monday. -- CNN's Elise Labott contributed to this report Copyright 2006 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report. 
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