Thousands of individuals in Flores, Indonesia, were still in need of assistance on Monday following a severe earthquake that resulted in at least 68 fatalities, over 200 injuries, and significant damage to numerous structures. Residents in East Nusa Tenggara province’s Flores island were mourning the loss of victims and awaiting aid in isolated communities affected by the destructive earthquake.
Rasyid Jafar, a resident of the hardest-hit area in Manggarai regency, expressed the urgent need for essential supplies like food, medicine, and clean water as his home lay in ruins. President Prabowo Subianto led a moment of silence during Indonesia’s Independence Day ceremony in Jakarta, urging prayers for those impacted by disasters in East Nusa Tenggara and other regions.
The earthquake, which struck East Nusa Tenggara province early Saturday at a depth of 10 kilometers, caused extensive destruction, damaging over 4,500 homes, displacing 19,000 individuals to temporary shelters, and injuring 213 people. The disaster also led to the destruction of health facilities, schools, and places of worship.
Authorities reported 1,576 aftershocks as of Monday, with about 50 of them felt by residents. The governor of the province declared a 14-day state of emergency on Sunday to manage the crisis effectively.
In Flores, thousands of people sought refuge under tarpaulin tents outside their damaged homes to avoid potential aftershocks. The island displayed widespread devastation, with fallen trees obstructing roads, homes in ruins, and boulders blocking pathways. Emergency response teams, comprising nearly 1,500 military and police personnel, were deployed to distribute aid and assist in rescue operations.
Aid workers successfully reached Palue Island, close to the earthquake’s epicenter, after a challenging journey through landslide-affected terrain, providing much-needed assistance to isolated residents. Indonesia’s susceptibility to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions due to its location on the Pacific “Ring of Fire” emphasizes the country’s ongoing vulnerability to natural disasters.
The recent earthquake in Flores serves as a stark reminder of Indonesia’s history of seismic events, including the devastating 1992 earthquake and tsunami in Flores, the catastrophic 2004 Sumatra earthquake and tsunami, and the Sulawesi earthquake and tsunami in 2018.