Photo Credit: Refugees International/ Joel Charny
01/13/2005

Nearly four weeks after the earthquake and the resulting tsunami struck the coast of Aceh, Indonesia with such devastating force, the survivors are starting to emerge from the shock and think about recovery.

The scale of the destruction is overwhelming. As the Refugees International assessment team traveled along the coastal road from Banda Aceh towards Meulaboh, the driver occasionally stopped the car, pointed to a flat expanse containing nothing but mud and debris as far as the eye could see, and said flatly, "Three villages were there," or, "This was a military encampment." The road to Meulaboh from Banda Aceh remains impassable, with 37 bridges out and parts of the road washed away. There are still communities along the Indian Ocean coast that are completely isolated and can only be reached by helicopter.