A powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck eastern Indonesia early on Saturday, resulting in the deaths of two individuals and causing widespread panic across the Flores region. The shallow quake led to the collapse of buildings and homes in an area known for seismic activity.
Authorities initially issued a tsunami warning following the tremor, but this was subsequently lifted after monitoring indicated no significant sea level changes posing a threat to coastal communities.
The US Geological Survey reported the quake occurred at 5.58am local time, with its epicentre located off the north coast of Flores island, approximately 68 kilometres (42 miles) northwest of the coastal town of Ende. It struck at a shallow depth of 10 kilometres, a factor that can intensify surface shaking. The main tremor was followed by two aftershocks, one of which registered a magnitude of 6.1.
Berton Suar Pelita Panjaitan, a spokesperson for Indonesia's disaster agency, confirmed the fatalities to reporters in Jakarta, stating: "At this point there are two reported fatalities" – a man and a woman. Mr Panjaitan added that authorities were continuing to assess the full extent of the damage across the affected areas.
Residents in Nagekeo regency, the area situated closest to the earthquake's epicentre, immediately sought higher ground as the shaking began.
Lukas Lotar, a 31-year-old hospital customer service official, described the immediate aftermath to AFP, saying: "Suddenly it started to shake and I panicked. Patients also fled the hospital, the jolt was big. I saw some walls were cracked."
Another Nagekeo resident, 56-year-old Yohanes Babo, was at a local market when the earthquake struck. He recounted: "The shaking was strong. Thankfully, we were already outside the house. People were panicking, running here and there. We’re evacuating for the time being... and trying to get to the hills." Mr Babo confirmed his family's safety, stating: "My family is safe. No one was harmed."
The Indonesia’s meteorology, climatology and geophysics agency (BMKG) initially issued a tsunami warning, which was later cancelled. Wijayanto, the BMKG earthquake and tsunami director, explained that monitoring showed no significant sea level changes. "We have ended [the tsunami warning] but we will keep monitoring the sea level," he stated.
Images broadcast on Indonesian television depicted hundreds of people in Nagekeo regency evacuating, with visible rubble from damaged structures in their surroundings. Initial reports indicated heavy damage was felt across much of Flores island.
Yohanna Embu, a resident of Sikka, a regency within the East Nusa Tenggara province, confirmed that numerous buildings sustained damage due to the intensity of the shaking. She observed: "Many buildings here were damaged... I saw that the waiting room at the port terminal in Maumere had collapsed."
Indonesia, an archipelago comprising more than 17,000 islands, is frequently impacted by earthquakes and volcanic activity. This vulnerability stems from its geographical position on the "Ring of Fire," a horseshoe-shaped belt of volcanoes and fault lines that encircles the Pacific Basin.
Separately, Australia’s tsunami warning centre announced that the undersea earthquake posed "no tsunami threat to the Australian mainland, islands or territories."
