Major Earthquake Strikes Indonesia Causing Casualties and Damage

A severe earthquake with a magnitude of 7.7 hit the sea off the coast of Indonesia early Saturday morning, resulting in the deaths of at least 20 individuals. The quake led to buildings and homes collapsing, inducing panic in a region known for deadly seismic activity. Authorities reported six injuries and two people missing following a landslide triggered by the quake.

Initial tsunami warnings prompted coastal residents to move to higher ground. However, these warnings were later canceled when the Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency observed that sea levels remained unchanged, posing no threat to coastal communities.

The U.S. Geological Survey stated that the earthquake struck the Flores region at a depth of 10 kilometers (6.22 miles) at 5:58 AM local time. The epicenter was located 68 kilometers (42 miles) north-northwest of Ende, East Nusa Tenggara province.

Following the main earthquake, several aftershocks occurred. Fathur Rahman, head of the Maumere Search and Rescue Agency, reported the recovery of at least 20 bodies in the devastated regencies of Sikka, West Manggarai, and East Manggarai. Among the deceased, eight bodies were retrieved from a landslide in Reok village, Manggarai. Six people were hospitalized with severe injuries.

Rescuers continue to search for two villagers believed to be buried under tons of mud dislodged by the quake-induced landslide. The head of East Nusa Tenggara police, Rudi Darmoko, mentioned that power outages in towns and villages have hindered information flow and complicated search and rescue operations.

“We are still collecting reports of damages and casualties, but there are communication disruptions,” Darmoko stated. Landslides in the Ende regency due to the quake also blocked the Trans-Flores highway, a major mountain road of about 700 kilometers (435 miles) stretching across Flores Island.

Local TV footage showed hospital patients being evacuated from buildings as a precaution. Medical staff moved equipment outside, including beds, IV stands, and oxygen cylinders, setting up temporary treatment areas for emergencies.

The National Disaster Management Agency deployed a helicopter to assist with logistics, aiding emergency response operations, including possible evacuations. Aerial support is crucial given the geography of East Nusa Tenggara, consisting of numerous islands with significant transportation and access challenges.

Around 2,000 villagers from the Nagekeo regency sought refuge in temporary shelters. The quake was felt widely on Flores Island and surrounding areas, causing considerable damage.

Yohanna Embu, a resident of Sikka regency, noted that several structures were damaged, and panic drove people to higher ground. “Many buildings here were damaged… I saw the waiting area at the Pelni port terminal in Maumere had collapsed,” she recounted.

Students from St. Peter Major Seminary in Sikka fled during a morning mass when a hall roof collapsed, according to Father Guidelbertus Tanga, rector of the seminary, locally known as Ritapiret Seminary, on predominantly Catholic Flores Island. “Our students and nuns ran out in panic under a collapsing roof,” Tanga explained. “At least one priest broke a leg after jumping from the second floor during the quake.”

The earthquake also caused panic in Labuan Bajo, a gateway to the Komodo National Park, one of Indonesia’s famed attractions. Damage was also reported in Bima city, in the neighboring province of West Nusa Tenggara, and parts of southern Sulawesi Island.

Initially, Indonesian authorities issued tsunami alerts for parts of East Nusa Tenggara, West Nusa Tenggara, South Sulawesi, and Southeast Sulawesi provinces, urging residents to avoid beaches and riverbanks. The agency placed the shallow underwater quake near Flores Island.

Indonesia’s Earthquake Prone Landscape

Indonesia, an archipelago with over 17,000 islands, frequently experiences earthquakes and volcanic activity due to its location along the Pacific Ring of Fire, an area with numerous volcanoes and tectonic faults.

A powerful earthquake in 1992 triggered a tsunami that killed about 2,500 people in Flores, part of a group of islands in Eastern Indonesia.

In 2018, a magnitude 7.5 earthquake caused a significant localized tsunami that devastated coastal areas, while the resulting liquefaction turned entire neighborhoods into rivers of mud in the eastern Indonesian city of Palu along the Palu-Koro fault. The disaster claimed over 4,400 lives.

In 2010, a 10-foot (three-meter) wave struck the Mentawai Islands off Sumatra’s western coast just minutes after a large offshore earthquake. More than 400 people died, and hundreds of homes were destroyed.

In December 2004, a massive 9.1 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Sumatra triggered a tsunami that killed 230,000 people across a dozen countries.