A powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck the eastern region of Indonesia early Saturday morning, causing significant destruction and claiming the lives of at least 38 people. The tremors, which occurred north of Flores Island, triggered widespread panic as residents fled into the streets to escape collapsing structures.
In the immediate aftermath, authorities issued a tsunami warning for the affected coastal areas. However, Indonesia's Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency (BMKG) later lifted the alert, confirming that they were no longer detecting significant sea level rises that could pose a threat to coastal communities.
Suharyanto, the chief of the National Agency for Disaster Countermeasure (BNPB), provided an update during a press conference, stating that in addition to the 38 confirmed deaths, two people were seriously injured and 11 sustained minor injuries. He further noted that approximately 2,000 residents have evacuated their homes on their own initiative.
While the threat of a tsunami has passed, officials continue to monitor the seismic activity. Nelly Florida Riama, a deputy director for geophysics at the BMKG, warned that aftershocks are still occurring. She urged the public to remain calm, disregard irresponsible rumors, and rely exclusively on official information channels from the BMKG.
The impact of the earthquake was widespread, with tremors reported across several regencies. These include Nagekeo, Sikka, and West Manggarai in East Nusa Tenggara province; Bima City and Bima Regency in West Nusa Tenggara; as well as the Jeneponto, Selayar Islands, and Maros Regencies in South Sulawesi.
