Around 5,000 individuals have been relocated following a severe magnitude-7.7 earthquake that struck an area in eastern Indonesia, resulting in a minimum of 53 casualties, road closures, and landslides, as reported by authorities on Sunday. The incident also left over 130 individuals injured, many sustaining broken bones.
This earthquake on Saturday stands as the most fatal in the Southeast Asian nation since a 2022 quake in West Java claimed hundreds of lives. The Sikka region saw more than 3,300 individuals self-evacuating or seeking refuge in a sports arena, according to the disaster mitigation agency BNPB. Residents in Sikka found themselves stranded outside collapsed residences, seeking shelter under makeshift tarps, with some receiving medical attention in tents outside a Maumere hospital.
Abdul Mutas, aged 63, shared his experience, stating, “I only brought my body,” after seeking safety on a tarp surrounded by trees in Sikka town with his family, emphasizing the urgency they felt as the tide rose following the quake. Simon Subandi, the deputy regent of Sikka, mentioned that almost all residents avoided staying indoors and instead resorted to sleeping on porches or tents outside.
Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya confirmed the deployment of over 3,500 military and police personnel to the affected region. Concerns about aftershocks loomed as residents in Maumere, where a port was shut down due to damages from the quake, expressed fear. The disaster agency recorded nearly 1,000 aftershocks following the initial earthquake, prompting hundreds of locals to seek refuge in a designated sports stadium.
The search for potential survivors trapped under rubble in the most affected areas of Manggarai, East Manggarai, and Nagekeo remains a top priority, according to Suryaman, a rescue agency official. Although no missing person reports have been received, search efforts are hindered by landslides and ongoing aftershocks.
While power restoration progress nears completion, efforts to repair distribution lines are ongoing, as stated by state utility firm Perusahaan Listrik Negara on Sunday. An emergency declaration for the province has been issued by the East Nusa Tenggara government, allowing for the mobilization of resources and funding, according to BNPB.
Geology expert Dwikorita Karnawati highlighted the earthquake risk in the region due to the “Flores back-arc thrust fault,” a significant system of west-east thrust faults. Notably, the area affected by this earthquake suffered a destructive magnitude-7.5 quake in 1992, as confirmed by Indonesia’s geophysics agency. Indonesia, with a population of 290 million residing in a vast archipelago, sits within the “Pacific Ring of Fire,” a highly active seismic zone known for frequent earthquakes and volcanic activities.