According to the information we received, 20 people died, six were injured and two are still buried," Fathur Rahman, an officer at the Maumere Search and Rescue Agency, told France-Presse news agency by phone.
7.7 magnitude earthquake leaves dozens dead in Indonesia
According to the information we received, 20 people died, six were injured and two are still buried," Fathur Rahman, an officer at the Maumere Search and Rescue Agency, told France-Presse news agency by phone. A previous report, released...
The earthquake caused severe damage and the collapse of buildings, Indonesia's disaster management agency confirmed. Local television footage showed patients being evacuated from several hospitals as a precautionary measure following the quake.
- Hospital staff moved equipment outside, including beds, IV poles and oxygen cylinders, and set up temporary care areas to adapt to emergency conditions.
- The Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG, its acronym in Bahasa) even issued a tsunami warning, which was canceled shortly afterwards.
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A previous report, released by the same agency in Maumere, the second largest city on the island of Flores, indicated that at least two residents had died and two others were injured.
The earthquake caused severe damage and the collapse of buildings, Indonesia's disaster management agency confirmed.
Local television footage showed patients being evacuated from several hospitals as a precautionary measure following the quake.
Hospital staff moved equipment outside, including beds, IV poles and oxygen cylinders, and set up temporary care areas to adapt to emergency conditions.
The Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG, its acronym in Bahasa) even issued a tsunami warning, which was canceled shortly afterwards.
The BMKG had recommended that residents of parts of East Nusa Tenggara, West Nusa Tenggara, South Celebes and Southeast Celebes provinces stay away from beaches and riverbanks.
Residents along the affected coast were advised to move to higher ground as authorities monitored possible changes to the coastal strip.
The initial tremor was felt across much of the island of Flores and was followed by several aftershocks, including one measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale.
According to the United States Geological Survey, the earthquake hit the Indonesian region of Flores, at a depth of 10 kilometers, at 5:58 am this Saturday, Indonesian time.
The epicenter was located 68 kilometers northwest of the city of Ende.
It is estimated that around 2 million people live on the island of Flores, whose capital, Ende, with 90 thousand inhabitants, is on the south coast, opposite the epicenter.
Indonesia, a vast archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity due to its location on the "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific Basin.
In December 1992, a magnitude 7 earthquake triggered a tsunami that killed about 2,500 people on the southeastern island of Flores, which is part of a group of islands in the eastern half of Indonesia.
In 2004, Indonesia suffered one of the worst disasters in its history with the 9.1 magnitude earthquake that hit the coast of the island of Sumatra, triggering a tsunami that killed 170,000 people in the country and around 50,000 in neighboring countries.
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