ACEH WEST COAST ROAD

I'm sure lots of decisions are being based on the assumption that the temporary road will soon open up the coast for reconstruction. It will while the rain holds off. A few weeks at best.

Our medical team and I went up to LIGAN yesterday along the new road. On the way up it was steep and rough but ok. Then we had a light rain shower. 30 minutes of light rain from a small thunderstorm.

Nothing could move! The road turned to a slide and it was impossible to go up or down hill! This road has just been upgraded and it has not been used yet! Wait till it gets some traffic and then some rain and the mountain sections will become impossible even for 4x4 vehicles. We waited till the sun came out and the road dried off. It was still very dangerous but passable on motorbikes. A 2 wheel drive car would have had no chance. No trucks could move.

Now for the bad news. A lot of the road is across the swamp land and the swamps are 1.5m lower than before the tsunami. The tsunami has trashed the vegetation on the flood plains so run-off will be unrestrained. These sections of road will flood badly.

Dont forget that the rivers are all full of debris and mud from the tsunami and that the 1.5m drop combined with heavy rain will cause huge expansion of the coastal flood plains. Evidence to date clear in BA and Meulaboh after each heavy rain.

Batavia and ships/boats are going to need to be here until the govt can build a real road at higher elevation and with good paving. That will take years because so much of the new road is actually using the old road. Most of that is now well below the elevation needed for an all weather coastal highway.

Please alert donors/govt agencies. I'm not an engineer so it might be worth sending an expert out to have a look first hand.