Since the powerful earthquake struck on June 4, killing over 100 people and causing widespread devastation, more than 730 aftershocks have occurred. Each of them a reminder of not only the tragedy but also of how inferior you are to the mighty powers of nature - you just can't help feeling scared when the Mother Earth starts shaking below your feet. Although the first earthquake is usually the most powerful, the houses which did not collapse incurred substantial damage making them much more fragile and susceptible to aftershocks of even lesser magnitude. As always, people are coping the best they can, trying to get life back to normal as quickly as possible. Schools have reopened, usually with desks and chairs placed outdoors under plastic sheeting next to the collapsed building.
Shops have wooden frames inside to support the roofs.
While carpenters are working high above on ladders to repair the damages, it is business as usual for the cashier and customers below. Many people still sleep in tents or under plastic sheeting, either because their houses have collapsed or from fear that it will do so during the next tremor. Other volunteers set off on motorbikes the morning after the earthquake, riding to villages where people might lie injured, unable to get to hospital. They passed on the information to authorities and aid agencies, who tried to arrange transport. The most severely injured were taken to the provincial hospital in Bengkulu City, the capital of the province of 1.5 million people.