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Magnitude 7.7 earthquake strikes off Indonesia's coast, killing at least 20
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− Fresh Air Wild Card with Rachel Martin It's Been a Minute Embedded Get NPR+ More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop Get NPR+ Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics Magnitude 7.7 earthquake off Indonesia's coast kills dozens A powerful earthquake struck off the coast of Indonesia early Saturday, collapsing buildings as well as causing panic in a region prone to deadly quakes.
+ Fresh Air Wild Card with Rachel Martin It's Been a Minute Embedded Get NPR+ More Podcasts & Shows Search Newsletters NPR Shop Get NPR+ Tiny Desk New Music Friday All Songs Considered Music Features Live Sessions About NPR Diversity Support Careers Press Ethics Rescuers dig through rubble and landslides after Indonesia quake kills 51 A powerful earthquake struck off the coast of Indonesia early Saturday, collapsing buildings as well as causing panic in a region prone to deadly quakes.
− Asia Magnitude 7.7 earthquake strikes off Indonesia's coast, killing at least 47 Updated August 15, 20265:40 PM ET Originally published August 15, 20264:29 AM ET By
The Associated Press
In this photo released by the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS), rescuers attempt to clear debris at building damaged by an earthquake in Maumere, East Nusa Tenggara Province, Indonesia, Saturday, Aug.
+ Asia Rescuers dig through rubble and landslides after Indonesia quake kills 51 Updated August 16, 20265:54 AM ET Originally published August 15, 20264:29 AM ET By
The Associated Press
In this photo released by the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS), rescuers attempt to clear debris at building damaged by an earthquake in Maumere, East Nusa Tenggara Province, Indonesia, Saturday, Aug.
− BASARNAS via AP hide caption
MAUMERE, Indonesia — A powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off the coast of Indonesia early Saturday, killing at least 47 people, collapsing buildings and causing panic in a region prone to deadly quakes.
+ BASARNAS via AP hide caption
RUTENG, Indonesia — Rescue teams in eastern Indonesia recovered four more bodies Sunday after a magnitude-7.7 earthquake struck the day before, bringing the death toll to 51, authorities said.
− Authorities said dozens more residents were injured and warned that the death toll would almost certainly rise.
+ Thousands have been displaced.
− Authorities issued a tsunami warning and urged coastal residents to move to higher ground, but later lifted the warning when Indonesia's meteorological agency said monitoring showed no significant sea-level changes that posed a threat to coastal communities. Some smaller tsunamis were reported.
− Geological Survey said the quake hit eastern Indonesia's Flores region at a depth of 10 kilometers (6 miles) at 5:58 a.m.
+ Geological Survey said the powerful earthquake hit eastern Indonesia's Flores region at a depth of 10 kilometers (6 miles) at 5:58 a.m.
− Its epicenter was 68 km (42 miles) north-northwest of the city of Ende in East Nusa Tenggara province.
The meteorological agency said the quake was followed by at least 235 aftershocks, with the largest recorded at magnitude 6.2.
The agency's sea-level monitoring stations acknowledged some small tsunamis reached coastal villages in Manggarai and East Manggarai regencies.
+ Residents fled in panic as tsunami warnings were issued and later lifted.
− Videos obtained by The Associated Press showed the coastal village of Riung in Ngada regency blanketed in mud and debris after what the agency described as a 1.61-meter (5.3 feet) tsunami. Fishing boats were stranded ashore, infrastructure damaged, and homes surrounded by sediment left by receding waters.
+ At least 235 aftershocks followed, according to Indonesia's meteorological agency.
− Waves measuring 0.94 meters (3.1 feet) were observed in Maurole, Ende Regency.
Tsunami waves exceeding 0.5 meters (1.6 feet) were detected in Bulukumba, South Sulawesi, and Sape in Bima Regency.
A strong, land-based earthquake of 6.9 magnitude hit North Sumatra province in western Indonesia on Saturday afternoon, according to the USGS.
+ Rescuers on Sunday dug through debris looking for people feared buried beneath landslides triggered by the quake across six regencies on Flores, a predominantly Catholic island in Muslim-majority Indonesia.
− It struck 172.5 kilometers (107 miles) beneath the earth's surface, meaning it was too deep to cause significant damage or casualties, Indonesian authorities said.
+ They focused on three regencies that remained inaccessible after the earthquake: the hardest-hit Manggarai, East Manggarai and Nagekeo.
− East Nusa Tenggara Police Chief Rudi Darmoko said power outages hampered the spread of information about the impact of the earthquake in cities and villages, complicating search and rescue efforts.
+ "We have cleared most landslides and reopened roads to previously isolated villages, although communication disruptions and power outages continue to hamper search efforts," said Fathur Rahman, head of the Search and Rescue Office in Maumere, the capital of Sikka regency.
− "We are continuing to collect reports of damage and casualties, but there are communication disruptions," Darmoko said.
+ The National Search and Rescue Agency said 101 people were injured.
− He said quake-triggered landslides in Ende regency blocked the Trans-Flores highway, a roughly 700-kilometer (435-mile) paved mountain road spanning Flores Island, from Labuan Bajo to Larantuka.
+ More than 900 homes were destroyed and 450 more damaged, forcing about 5,000 people into temporary shelters.
− The head of the National Disaster Management Agency, Suharyanto, said rescuers have recovered at least 47 bodies, mostly in Sikka, Manggarai and East Manggarai, and at least 50 people were taken to hospitals.
+ Thousands at Labuan Bajo, the gateway to Komodo National Park, one of Indonesia's best-known tourist destinations, spent the night outdoors, fearing strong aftershocks.
− Suharyanto, who like many Indonesians uses a single name, said the quake flattened at least 157 houses and damaged nearly 200 more, forcing about 2,000 villagers to abandon their homes and move to temporary shelters.
+ "The shaking was terrifying, so intense that my house nearly collapsed," said Anastasia Imad, a farmer, speaking from a makeshift green tent beside her damaged home.
− The powerful temblor also destroyed more than 100 public facilities, including schools, medical centers and churches.
The death toll could rise because landslides triggered by the earthquake buried or cut off many remote villages across six regencies on Flores Island, said Fathur Rahman, who heads the Search and Rescue Office in Maumere, the capital of Sikka.
Some remote villages are completely buried, he said, and damaged infrastructure and a lack of heavy equipment were hindering rescue efforts.
Authorities deployed three helicopters and a rescue vessel to support logistics and emergency response operations, including potential evacuations.
+ "We feared the aftershocks would bring it down on us while we slept."
A man examines the damage to a building following an earthquake in East Manggarai, East Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia, Saturday, Aug.
− East Nusa Tenggara consists of numerous islands and presents significant transportation and access challenges.
A man examines the damage to a building following an earthquake in East Manggarai, East Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia, Saturday, Aug.
− Kurniawan/AP hide caption
The quake was felt across much of Flores island with initial reports indicating heavy damage.
+ Kurniawan/AP hide caption
Landslides blocked sections of the Trans-Flores Highway, a roughly 700-kilometer (435-mile) road linking communities across the mountainous island.
− Yohanna Embu, who lives in Sikka, said people ran in a panic to higher ground.
"Many buildings here were damaged ...
+ Meanwhile, relief workers distributed rice, ready-to-eat meals, drinking water, blankets and medicine, while emergency shelters were being set up for displaced residents.
− I saw that the waiting room at the port terminal in Maumere had collapsed," she said.
+ Authorities said restoring electricity and communications, as well as delivering aid to remote villages isolated by landslides, remained among the biggest challenges.
− Students at St. Peter Major Seminary in Sikka who were attending morning Mass fled when the roof of an assembly hall collapsed, said the Rev. Guidelbertus Tanga, rector of the seminary, known locally as Ritapiret Seminary on the predominantly Catholic island of Flores.
+ Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, is prone to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions because of its location on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," a horseshoe-shaped arc of seismic faults and volcanoes.
− "Our students and nuns ran out in panic beneath a collapsing roof," Tanga said.
+ Flores has experienced some of the country's deadliest disasters.
− "At least one priest suffered a broken leg after jumping from the second floor of a building during the quake."
The quake also struck Labuan Bajo, a gateway town to eastern Indonesia's Komodo National Park, one of the country's best-known attractions. Damage was reported in Bima, a city in neighboring West Nusa Tenggara province, and in parts of southern Sulawesi island.
+ A powerful earthquake and tsunami in 1992 killed about 2,500 people on the island.
− Indonesian authorities initially issued a tsunami warning for parts of East Nusa Tenggara, West Nusa Tenggara, South Sulawesi and Southeast Sulawesi provinces, and urged residents to stay away from beaches and riverbanks.
+ In 2018, a magnitude 7.5 earthquake triggered a tsunami on Sulawesi that killed more than 4,400 people.
− The agency located the shallow undersea quake near Flores island.
+ In 2004, a magnitude 9.1 quake off Sumatra unleashed a tsunami that killed about 230,000 people in a dozen countries.
− Indonesia, a vast archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity because of its location on the "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific Basin.
Most notably, a powerful earthquake caused a tsunami in 1992 that killed about 2,500 people on Flores, part of a group of islands in the eastern half of Indonesia, while in 2018, a magnitude 7.5 quake spawned a large localized tsunami that wiped out coastal areas, killing more than 4,400 people.
In December 2004, a massive magnitude 9.1 earthquake off Sumatra in western Indonesia triggered a tsunami that killed 230,000 people in a dozen countries.