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Indonesia lowers quake death tollReports suggest sanitary conditions worsen in relief zone
SPECIAL REPORT
• Gallery: People, buildings devastated
• Quake relief: Where to donate
• Map: Where the quake hit
• Special Report: Disaster in Java
YOUR E-MAIL ALERTSJAKARTA, Indonesia -- Indonesian officials on Monday lowered the death toll by more than 400 from last month's deadly earthquake that left hundreds of thousands of people homeless in central Java. The Indonesian Social Affairs Ministry now attributes 5,782 deaths to the temblor -- down from 6,234. The ministry said double statistics from various agencies contributed to the overcount. Officially, 36,299 people were injured in the quake, according to the ministry. The 6.3-magnitude quake struck just before 6 a.m. Saturday (11 p.m. GMT Friday), May 27, about 15 miles south-southwest of Yogyakarta. Meanwhile, news services reported that sanitary conditions are deteriorating for the hundreds of thousands of survivors of Indonesia's earthquake who lost their homes. "We have to go back to work, otherwise we can't eat or rebuild," said Sri Supati, harvesting rice Sunday at a communal paddy field no larger than three tennis courts, in a report from The Associated Press. "We have waited for nearly a week, but no help has come," said the farmer from Kerujukan in the hardest-hit district of Bantul. Nearby, several villagers were breaking down the remains of half-fallen walls, while others carted off bamboo to make temporary shelters. More than a thousand aftershocks have hit central Java since the earthquake struck just over a week ago. Officials estimate that 135,000 homes were destroyed by the earthquake. Most of the more than 600,000 that are estimated to be homeless are living in makeshift shelters -- often just plastic tarps -- with no toilets or running water. Doctors said wells and streams in many villages have become polluted because of the poor sanitary conditions. "There are still many who are sick, some with skin diseases because of poor sanitation," said Dr. Hendra, a government doctor who has been traveling around the quake zone in a medical van, according to the AP. "The water for washing is dirty and many patients are not taking proper care of their wounds." U.N. spokeswoman Amanda Pitt said in an AP report that sanitation and the provision of clean water to the homeless "remain a key concern." Mount Merapi, one of the world's most active volcanos, spewed lava and hot clouds of gas and ash dozens of times on Sunday, said Sugiono, a government scientist who uses one name. The volcano is north of Yogyakarta, the main city in the quake zone. Merapi's lava dome has swelled since the quake to 100 meters (330 feet), raising fears that it could collapse, officials said. That could send searing-hot clouds of gas and debris called pyroclastic flows pouring down the slopes into inhabited areas, the government volcanology center warned. Indonesia is prone to seismic upheaval because of its location on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin. 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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