LDS church ships aid to Indonesia

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Tuesday loaded a 747 cargo jet with medical and other emergency supplies to be distributed to survivors of Saturday's 6.3 earthquake in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, church officials said.

Loaded with eight truck loads of first-aid supplies, hygiene kits, crutches, materials to make casts for broken bones and clothing, the plane was scheduled to leave Salt Lake City by afternoon and arrive in Jakarta, Indonesia late Wednesday. The supplies come from church storehouses in Salt Lake City.

Once in Indonesia, the supplies will be distributed by Islamic Relief Worldwide, which also provided the cargo plane. The Indonesian government will also distribute the most urgently needed materials by helicopter, church spokeswoman Kim Farah.

The LDS church has roughly 5,800 members in Indonesia and has been sending missionaries there since the 1970s.

Since Saturday, church volunteers in Indonesia have been cooking and serving meals. The church also purchased cots and blankets for an orthopedic hospital overrun with people in need of medical attention, Salt Lake City-based church officials said.

Annually, church humanitarian programs provide, jobs, medical care, medical supplies, clothing, food and other services to 154 countries. The church's estimated 12 million members donate time, money and goods to church storehouses.