Padang, West Sumatra, Sept. 3 -- The Health Ministry is preparing and training reserve health workers to assist medical teams in the event of a natural disaster, including megathrust earthquake.

"These reserve health workers are trained health volunteers who can be mobilized at any time in an emergency," the ministry's Secretary General, Kunta Wibawa Dasa Nugraha, noted in Padang, on Wednesday.

Several agencies participated in the national megathrust preparedness simulation in Padang City, West Sumatra, on Wednesday. They included the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas), the Indonesian Army (TNI), and the Police.

Nugraha said these reserve health workers will not only focus on he...