'Struggling to eat': Survivors suffer after Indonesia quake

Sahria Lelu and her family were still living in a tent outside a mosque six weeks after a powerful earthquake that killed dozens in Indonesia, highlighting the difficult road home for thousands of survivors.

The 7.7-magnitude quake near Flores Island on 15 August damaged tens of thousands of homes and left the water supply in limbo on one small island. It was also followed by roughly 15,000 aftershocks.

"What prevents us from going back home is that we are still traumatised, very traumatised," said the 38-year-old resident of Nagekeo district, one of the disaster-affected areas.

"Thank God, food is guaranteed here, and there are volunteers to help us," she added in the wake of the disaster, which the government says killed 151 people.

The quake triggered a tsunami alert, and ocean waters reached Sahria's family home but did not destroy it. She fears the aftershocks could unleash more dangerous waves.

More than 46,000 houses were damaged by the seismic shock, and nearly 28,000 people were still displaced as of 24 September, said National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Berton Panjaitan.

The latest figure is lower than the more than 150,000 people previously reported as displaced in September, but it does not provide the full picture.

Many survivors who have returned to their homes have preferred to camp outside, wary that their houses could collapse due to another shock.

Drinking water at risk

Sitting outside her damaged house in Flores's Sikka district, Maria Onselia said she had struggled since the disaster to find buyers for the fabric she weaves.

"We are struggling to eat," the 59-year-old said. "In this season, it's hard to get water. We have to buy water before we can buy rice."

She too was afraid to return to her damaged home and was living in a tent.

The government was aiming to have 314 units of temporary housing ready by late November, Nagekeo Deputy District Head Gonzalo Gratianus Muga Sada said.

The government is set to construct more than 2,400 units of permanent housing to replace those heavily damaged by the quake, disaster agency spokesman Berton said.

Residents on neighbouring Palue, a tiny island of around 10,000 people just north of Flores, have also had to worry about access to drinking water since the disaster.

People are buying water to meet their needs, but they also collect it by using bamboo poles to tap into and condense steam from geothermal sources on the volcanic island.

"What concerns us is the shortage of clean drinking water, because currently it is completely dry. All the storage tanks were broken," said 40-year-old teacher Methildus Nestor Langga.

Recovery still seems distant for many survivors.

Sahria said she did not know how long she would have to live away from her home, adding that officials had been dispatched to assess the damage around her village.

The earthquake also damaged a car and bike repair shop run by her husband, cutting off the family's source of income and forcing her to sell fish to earn some money.

She pleaded for the government to help her family, including with the struggle to find money to pay for her children's schooling.

"Please help us get back on our feet," Sahria said.