Air force prepares two hercules planes to fly relief aid to quake-ridden Bengkulu

"We have yet to decide on the departure of the aircraft, but we have already prepared some of them," Operations Chief of the Halim Perdanakusumah airbase Flight Colonel Gutomo said here Wednesday night.

"We are still waiting for instructions and relief aid to be flown to Bengkulu and to some other cities which had also been damaged by the strong tremor," Gutomo said.

In the meantime, spokesman for the Sriwijaya Military Command Lt Col Nurdin said that he was still awaiting detailed reports on the post-quake situation in Padang, West Sumatra.

"Contact between us with security personnel in the field is still cut off due to disrupted telephone lines," he said.