Indonesian officials today said they were worried about the possibility of accidents at over-stretched airports that received aid for tsunami victims, and had opened another one to ease the congestion.

Aid workers battling to ease the plight of survivors of the devastating quake and tsunami across south-east Asia were today warned they faced a dangerous new threat to efforts.

Gunfire echoed through the main tsunami-hit city on Indonesia’s Sumatra island today, underscoring the threat to the scores of foreigners helping victims of the disaster that struck two weeks ago.

Residents of Indonesia’s quake-and-tsunami-devastated Aceh province welcomed US Secretary of State Colin Powell’s visit to the region today, expressing gratitude for American aid.

The main airport on Indonesia’s tsunami-battered Sumatra island was closed today after a relief plane hit a herd of cows, hampering the world’s still-fragile efforts to get aid to victims of the disaster.