Rescue teams in Indonesia are searching for survivors after a powerful earthquake struck the island of Flores, killing at least 47 people and damaging hundreds of buildings.
The magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck shortly before 5:00 a.m. local time on Saturday, at a depth of 15 kilometres, according to Indonesia’s Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysical Agency.
The National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) said preliminary assessments showed that more than 900 homes and hundreds of other buildings were severely damaged following the main earthquake and 341 aftershocks.
The full extent of the destruction remained unclear as rescue and assessment operations continued, particularly in remote and mountainous areas.
Manggarai province was among the worst-hit areas, with 24 deaths reported. East Manggarai recorded 17 fatalities, while three people died in Sikka province and at least one person was killed in each of Ngada, Ende and West Manggarai provinces.
At least two people were seriously injured and another 11 suffered minor injuries.
More than 5,000 residents were sheltering in evacuation centres, while authorities had dispatched 10,500 aid packages to affected communities.
“Meeting basic needs and providing logistics for evacuees has become one of the top priorities of the emergency response,” the BNPB said.
Early assessments indicated that more than 150 houses had been severely damaged, along with dozens of schools, healthcare facilities, places of worship, government offices and other public infrastructure.
The earthquake was felt as far west as Bima Regency and Bima City, according to the BNPB.
Dramatic video from the port in Maumere, Flores’ largest town, showed large sections of concrete breaking away from a terminal building and falling onto passengers waiting to board an inter-island ferry. Several people were reportedly thrown into the sea after a gangway collapsed.
East Nusa Tenggara Governor Emanuel Melkiades Laka Lena said some victims were killed in their sleep when buildings and rubble collapsed.
Others were jolted awake by the powerful tremors.
“I was startled awake and immediately went to my child’s room,” Arnold Welianto, a resident of Talibura village in Sikka, told the BBC.
Welianto said many residents had fled towards higher ground after noticing that the sea had receded.
A tsunami warning was initially issued, prompting about 2,000 people to evacuate voluntarily. The warning was lifted roughly three hours later after authorities detected no significant rise in sea levels.
However, landslides caused by the earthquake blocked access to some villages, complicating rescue efforts.
Emergency teams worked through the day to reach people trapped beneath rubble, while a temporary medical tent was set up outside a hospital in Ruteng to treat injured residents.
The BNPB urged residents to remain calm, avoid coastal areas and stay away from buildings showing signs of structural damage.
Indonesia is highly vulnerable to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions because it lies along the meeting point of three major tectonic plates, forming part of the seismically active Pacific “Ring of Fire.”
The disaster also came as another magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck elsewhere in Indonesia, underscoring the country’s continuing exposure to powerful seismic activity.
