Earthquake Relief for Lombok

On 5 August 2018 myself and six of my friends were on Gili Trawangan island (off the coast of Lombok in Indonesia) when several earthquakes of 6.9 magnitude struck. Due to our close proximity to the sea, we fled to the only hill on the island (only 100 metres high) fearing a potential tsunami. We spent that night in darkness on a hill on the island, enduring several more earthquakes. The local people of Gili Trawangan comforted us and shared their food, blankets and advice with us. Upon daylight we spent hours on the beach, waiting to be evacuated to Lombok mainland.  Again thanks to the generosity of the local people we eventually got to Lombok airport. There we spent a second night sleeping outside, as there were more earthquakes that night too. With the help of family at home we were able to book flights out of the country. Five days after the first night of earthquakes, we made it home to Dublin Airport.

One month and more than 1500 aftershocks later, scientists have reported that the island of Lombok has lifted by 25cm. Over 550 people dead, with up to 500,000 people homeless. People continue to sleep outside for fear of further earthquakes and falling debris. They need shelter, safe drinking water, food, clothes, etc. There has been a recent outbreak of malaria, compounding the urgency of medicine and clean living conditions.

I have decided to partake in Hell and Back 10km this year, as a means to an end to raise money for the local people of Lombok. I'm covering all costs of participating myself, and promise that any money raised will go directly to the people of Lombok. Through social media, I am still in contact with locals who we met along on our trip. Based on their first hand experience and advice, I shall choose the recipients of any donations carefully.  Considering that €1 converts to 17,333 Indonesian rupiah, any donation (big or small) would be hugely appreciated!