A powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off Indonesia’s coast early Saturday, damaging homes and other buildings, killing at least two people and leaving others injured. The strong shaking sparked panic in an area frequently affected by major earthquakes.
Authorities initially issued a tsunami warning and instructed people living near the coast to move to higher ground. The warning was later canceled after Indonesia’s Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency reported no major changes in sea levels that could threaten coastal communities.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the earthquake occurred at a depth of about 10 kilometers in the Flores region at 5:58 a.m. local time. Its epicenter was located roughly 68 kilometers northwest of Ende in East Nusa Tenggara province. Several aftershocks were reported following the main earthquake.
Indonesia’s disaster management agency said preliminary information from the Maumere Search and Rescue Agency indicated that at least two people had died and two others were injured. Several structures reportedly suffered serious damage or collapsed.
Television footage showed patients being moved out of hospitals as a precaution. Medical workers transported beds, oxygen cylinders, IV equipment and other supplies outdoors and established temporary treatment areas to continue caring for patients safely.
Strong Shaking Felt Across Flores
The earthquake was felt throughout large parts of Flores island, where initial assessments indicated significant damage.
Yohanna Embu, a resident of Sikka in East Nusa Tenggara, said the powerful shaking damaged numerous buildings and caused frightened residents to rush toward higher ground. She reported that part of the waiting area at the Maumere port terminal had collapsed.
At St. Peter Major Seminary in Sikka, students attending morning Mass fled after the roof of an assembly building gave way, according to seminary rector Rev. Guidelbertus Tanga. The institution, commonly called Ritapiret Seminary, is located on predominantly Catholic Flores island.
Tanga said students and nuns escaped as the roof began collapsing. He also reported that at least one priest broke a leg after jumping from the second floor during the earthquake.
The initial tsunami warning covered parts of East Nusa Tenggara, West Nusa Tenggara, South Sulawesi and Southeast Sulawesi. Residents were advised to stay away from beaches and riverbanks while officials monitored the situation.
Indonesia’s Long History of Deadly Earthquakes
Indonesia is highly vulnerable to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions because the country sits along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an extensive zone of active faults and volcanoes.
Flores has experienced devastating disasters in the past. A major earthquake-triggered tsunami in 1992 killed around 2,500 people on the island.
In 2018, a magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck eastern Indonesia and generated a destructive local tsunami. Severe ground liquefaction also caused parts of Palu to turn into mudflows, destroying entire neighborhoods. More than 4,400 people died in that disaster.
The Mentawai Islands off Sumatra were struck by a roughly 3-meter tsunami in 2010, just minutes after a powerful offshore earthquake. More than 400 people died and hundreds of homes were destroyed.
One of Indonesia’s worst natural disasters occurred in December 2004, when a magnitude 9.1 earthquake near Sumatra triggered a massive Indian Ocean tsunami. The disaster killed approximately 230,000 people across a dozen countries.