Indonesia Struck by 7.7-Magnitude Earthquake, Casualties Reported amid Aftershocks and Landslides

Indonesia’s Flores Island was rocked by a magnitude 7.7 earthquake on Saturday morning, causing casualties, building collapses and the mass evacuation of residents.

The earthquake struck in the early hours of the morning. Its epicenter was offshore near Flores Island, about 68 kilometers northwest of the city of Ende. The quake’s relatively shallow depth caused it to be felt strongly in surrounding areas, while several aftershocks were subsequently recorded.

Casualty figures continue to fluctuate. The governor of East Nusa Tenggara province announced that at least five people had died, while the national disaster management agency, BNPB, initially reported one death and four injuries. The discrepancy is expected to be clarified as emergency teams continue their assessments in the affected areas.

Authorities issued a tsunami warning immediately after the earthquake. It was lifted around three hours later after only small waves were recorded along several parts of the coast.

Despite the official warning being lifted, Indonesian authorities urged people to stay away from beaches until further notice. Fears of a possible tsunami prompted residents of coastal areas to move to higher ground, while around 2,000 people were evacuated in the Nagekeo region.

Significant damage has been identified in several areas of East Nusa Tenggara. In addition to partially collapsed buildings, landslides, power outages and infrastructure damage were reported. As a safety precaution, patients at a hospital in Maumere were moved outside the building.

Residents said the tremors were extremely powerful. In Talibura, entire families rushed out of their homes, while elsewhere people ran toward higher ground for fear of a tsunami.

Panic also swept through a Catholic seminary in Sikka, where the roof of a hall collapsed during the earthquake. Accounts cited by the Associated Press said that a priest broke his leg after jumping from the second floor of a building during the tremors.

Flores, a mountainous island with approximately two million residents, has many communities living in small, scattered settlements. It lies in one of Indonesia’s most seismically active regions and is part of the Pacific’s so-called “Ring of Fire.”

Assessments of casualties and further damage are continuing, but aftershocks and landslides have made travel more difficult in some areas. Further information on the death toll and the extent of the damage is expected from search-and-rescue operations.