MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

First UN aid flight arrives in Java

The first UN aid flight has arrived in Indonesia's earthquake zone carrying water, tents, stoves and cooking sets, as the death toll from the disaster climbed near 5.000

Survivors scavenged for food in the debris of their houses, and thousands of injured were still being treated in hospitals overflowing with bloodied patients.

Torrential rain that fell late on Sunday added to the misery of the 200,000 people displaced by Saturday's 6.3-magnitude quake, most living in makeshift shelters constructed from plastic, canvas or even cardboard.

British aid workers involved in the relief effort say they have made good progress in distributing emergency supplies, but admit there is a long way to go.

Oxfam spokesman Craig Owen, who is in Yogyakarta, said: "It has been quite an achievement and we are still all a bit surprised that we have managed to get supplies out to 6,000 people within 12 hours.

"We are pleased but we are definitely not taking a breather and it still looks likely that the scale of the disaster is going to grow."

He added that aid agencies were still facing problems accessing remote villages, some of which have seen 80% of their buildings flattened.

"As with other disasters, it is the people in poverty that suffer the most and it is the mud brick houses that have been torn apart by the earthquake," he added.

The charity's deputy humanitarian director, Jane Cocking, said although the aid effort had got off to a "cracking" start, donations were still vital.(London)