A powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck eastern Indonesia early Saturday morning, killing at least 47 people, triggering landslides, and forcing thousands of residents into temporary shelters. The disaster, which destroyed hundreds of buildings across Flores Island, was followed hours later by a separate 6.4-magnitude tremor in western Sumatra.
The Morning Disaster on Flores Island
The main earthquake struck at 5:58 a.m. local time on Saturday at a depth of 10 kilometers, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Its epicenter was located 42 miles north-northwest of the city of Ende in East Nusa Tenggara province. Because of its shallow depth, the shaking was exceptionally violent near the coast.
At least 47 people were killed according to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency. East Nusa Tenggara Governor Emanuel Melkiades Laka Lena told a press conference that at least five people died in their sleep by collapsing rubble.
“The quake was massive, the shock was so strong,” said Nona, a 51-year-old resident of Talibura, a village in East Nusa Tenggara. “There were 13 of us inside the house and we all ran to save ourselves.”
Nona, a 51-year-old resident of Talibura
Structural damage was widespread across the region. Preliminary data shows that 157 homes were heavily damaged, 41 moderately damaged, and 148 lightly damaged alongside 87 schools, 18 health facilities, and five places of worship.
Tsunami Warnings and Evacuations
Immediately following the primary shock, Indonesian authorities issued urgent tsunami warnings and urged coastal residents to move to higher ground. Small tsunamis did materialize in certain areas. A wave measuring 1.61 meters reached a coastal village in East Manggarai, and a 0.94-meter wave hit Maurole in Ende Regency while smaller waves were detected elsewhere.
Monitoring soon confirmed no significant sea-level changes that would pose a broader threat, prompting authorities to lift the warning about three hours after the initial quake. Even so, the initial alert triggered self-evacuations.
About 2,000 residents in Nagekeo regency fled their homes as a precautionary measure. Many survivors stayed away from their properties as aftershocks continued to rattle the region.
Landslides Sever Transport and Hamper Rescue Operations
Search and rescue teams faced immediate logistical bottlenecks. Earthquake-triggered landslides blocked major arteries, cutting off the Trans-Flores highway—a 435-mile paved mountain road spanning Flores Island from Labuan Bajo to Larantuka.
Rescue workers struggled to reach Nagekeo, the region closest to the epicenter because roads were blocked by debris and mobile communications were disrupted. Officials attempted to deploy teams by ferry while authorities dispatched a helicopter and a rescue vessel to support emergency logistics and potential evacuations.
East Nusa Tenggara Police Chief Rudi Darmoko noted that power outages across cities and villages complicated information gathering and hindered initial search operations.
A Second Quake Strikes Sumatra
While emergency response teams managed the unfolding crisis in the country’s east, a second earthquake measuring magnitude 6.4 struck western Sumatra later in the day. The U.S. Geological Survey confirmed the separate seismic event.
Indonesian meteorological officials noted that the western Sumatra tremor occurred at a depth of 163 kilometers or more. Because of this substantial depth, authorities indicated it was unlikely to generate significant surface damage or casualties compared to the shallow disaster in the east where destruction was severe.
