Around 5,000 individuals have been relocated following a powerful magnitude-7.7 earthquake that struck an area in eastern Indonesia, resulting in a minimum of 53 fatalities, road blockages, and landslides, as per authorities’ statements on Sunday. More than 130 people sustained injuries, with many suffering from fractures.
The earthquake on Saturday marked the most deadly in Indonesia since a 2022 quake that claimed hundreds of lives in West Java. The disaster mitigation agency BNPB reported that over 3,300 individuals in the Sikka region either self-evacuated or sought refuge in a sports arena.
In Sikka, a number of residents found themselves stranded outside collapsed residences, seeking shelter under makeshift tarp tents. Some individuals received medical attention in a tent set up outside a hospital in Maumere, a port town. Abdul Mutas, 63, shared his experience of fleeing with his family to higher ground as the tides rose during the quake.
Simon Subandi, the deputy regent of Sikka, mentioned that nearly all residents in the area opted to sleep outdoors on porches or in tents due to safety concerns. The government has deployed over 3,500 military and police personnel to assist in the region.
Residents in Maumere expressed fear of aftershocks as they gathered in a port littered with debris and at a designated evacuation spot in a sports stadium. The disaster agency reported nearly 1,000 aftershocks following the initial quake.
Efforts to search for potential survivors trapped under rubble in the most affected areas of Manggarai, East Manggarai, and Nagekeo are ongoing. Although power has been mostly restored, distribution lines are still being repaired. The East Nusa Tenggara government has declared an emergency for the province to facilitate resource mobilization.
Geology expert Dwikorita Karnawati highlighted the seismic risks in the region due to the “Flores back-arc thrust fault.” The area had previously experienced a devastating magnitude-7.5 earthquake in 1992, causing significant damage. Indonesia, home to 290 million people, is situated in the seismically active “Pacific Ring of Fire,” where tectonic plate interactions lead to frequent earthquakes and volcanic activities.