Indonesia earthquake death toll rises to 53

WEB DESK: Around 5,000 people have been evacuated after a magnitude-7.7 earthquake struck eastern Indonesia, killing at least 53 people, blocking roads and triggering landslides, authorities said on Sunday.

More than 130 people were injured, many suffering broken bones, officials said.

The earthquake, which struck on Saturday, was Indonesia’s deadliest since a 2022 quake in West Java killed hundreds of people.

More than 3,300 residents in the eastern Sikka region either evacuated on their own or took shelter at a sports arena, according to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB).

Rescue efforts have been hampered by aftershocks, blocked roads and landslides as authorities continue to assess the extent of the damage.

Some residents were stranded outside collapsed homes under a makeshift tent made out of tarpaulin, while others received treatment in a tent outside a hospital.

A sprawling archipelago of 290 million people, Indonesia straddles the “Pacific Ring of Fire”, a seismically active zone where tectonic plates meet, triggering frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

Fear of aftershocks

At a now-closed port in Maumere, littered with debris from a collapsed roof and walls, residents told Reuters they were scared of aftershocks.

The disaster agency said on Sunday nearly a thousand aftershocks had been recorded since the quake.

Nearby, hundreds of residents filled a sports stadium designated as an evacuation site.

As the sun was setting, residents stood in line to get warm drinks. Some mothers hooked pieces of clothing to tent frames to form makeshift cradles for their babies. Other children played soccer outside.

Margaretha Movaldes Da Maga Bapa, head of the region’s disaster mitigation agency, said the quake had brought back memories of the one residents experienced in 1992.

“We’ve had quakes often. But this one really brings back the trauma of the one from 1992,” she said, as aid such as food and tents filled her office in trucks.

Suryaman, a rescue agency official, told Reuters the priority was clearing rubble in the most-affected areas of Manggarai, East Manggarai and Nagekeo to find people possibly still trapped under rubble.

Suryaman said the agency had not received missing person reports but added that landslides and aftershocks were impeding the search.

More than 3,500 military and police officers have been deployed to the region, Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya said in a statement.

Power supply was nearly fully restored, but authorities were still working on fixing distribution lines, state utility firm Perusahaan Listrik Negara said Sunday.

The East Nusa Tenggara government has declared an emergency for the province, BNPB said, a move that allows authorities to mobilise resources and funding.

Geology expert Dwikorita Karnawati said the region was at risk of earthquakes due to the “Flores back-arc thrust fault”, a major system of west-east thrust faults.

The area of the quake was hit in 1992 by a magnitude-7.5 earthquake that caused extensive destruction, Indonesia’s geophysics agency said.