Susan Norrie and David MacKenzie in collaboration with Justin Hale

Susan Norrie and David MacKenzie
in collaboration with Justin Hale

Australia

NOTES FROM HAVOC 2006–2007

Courtesy of the artists
Camera, editing, and location sound: David Mackenzie
Journalist and translator: Justin Hale
Driver and guide: Wowok (hadi ernowo)
Sound Mixing: Robert Hindley
Mourning chant: Fatima Naseer, Ayesha Younis and Naseer Ahmad

This excerpt from HAVOC was filmed in and around the Sidoarjo district of East Java.

In 2006, an eruption at the Banjar Panji 1 gas and oil drilling well created an environmental disaster in the region that continues to this day. Experts speculated that an earthquake in central Java had triggered the eruption; others believed that the catastrophe was primarily due to the mining company’s operational negligence.

The toxic fumes still spreading from the well include hydrogen sulphide, which causes long-term neurological and physical effects.

Since the first eruption, 13,000 families (some 50,000 people) have lost their homes and land. This project is dedicated to them.