Bantul

Putri and her friend Anif have been inseparable since the earthquake. Each day, the little girls come to the giant white tent, grab a handful of crayons and set to work. Five-year-old Putri sketches a mountain with gray smoke snaking from its peak. ”Merapi”, she says, referring to the increasingly active volcano nearby.

Bird flu could threaten survivors of Indonesia’s earthquake, an aid agency warned, after finding people whose homes were destroyed sheltering in dung-smeared chicken sheds. A strong aftershock sent panicked survivors running into the streets early on Saturday.

United Nations said hospitals were still overcrowded and lacked basic supplies to treat the mass of injured. The death toll rose to 6 234 while the number of those hurt in the disaster more than doubled to about 46 000, with more than 33 000 of them suffering serious injuries.

Indonesia on Wednesday defended the earthquake relief effort as aid agencies said survivors are still in desperate need of medical care and water four days after the disaster. The scale of the disaster became clearer as the death toll rose to 5 846, the social affairs ministry said on Wednesday.

Thousands of desperate Indonesian quake survivors were still waiting for aid on Tuesday as they prepared for a fourth night under makeshift tents, despite pledges that help would come quickly. The death toll from Saturday’s powerful earthquake had risen to nearly 5 700.