Earthquake in Indonesia: at least 20 people dead

At least 20 people have already died as a result of a magnitude 7.7 earthquake and dozens of aftershocks that struck eastern Indonesia on Saturday, the rescue agency said, UNN reports, citing Reuters.

Details

Tsunami waves less than 1 meter high were recorded in several areas of the Southeast Asian country after the morning earthquake. The tsunami warning was lifted approximately three hours after the earthquake.

Rescuers around the port city of Maumere found 20 dead people, six injured people and two people trapped under the rubble, said Fatur Rachman, head of the city's rescue agency. Maumere is the main city in Sikka Regency on Flores Island in eastern Indonesia's vast archipelago.

Teams have still been unable to reach Nagekeo, the region closest to the epicenter, and communications there have been disrupted, Fatur told Reuters. Attempts to reach Nagekeo by car were blocked by landslides, while another team was trying to get there by ferry, he said.

About 2,000 Nagekeo residents were evacuated, and damage to a number of houses, warehouses and government facilities was reported, the national disaster management agency BNPB said. Authorities also reported traffic jams on roads and power outages affecting some areas of the regency.

The governor of East Nusa Tenggara province, Emanuel Melkiades Laka Lena, said at a press conference that at least five people had died as a result of falling debris while they were sleeping.

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BNPB, which put the earthquake's toll at one dead and four injured, said it was still collecting data.

Parts of a building turned to dust and rubble as people screamed and ran into the street, as seen in a Facebook video ‌confirmed ⁠by Reuters as having been filmed at the port in Maumere.

The strong tremor was felt in East Nusa Tenggara, West Nusa Tenggara and parts of South Sulawesi, while residents of several areas reported tremors lasting about one minute, according to a BNPB statement.

"Most people felt shocked and ran out of their homes," the statement said.

A hospital in Ende Regency in East Nusa Tenggara province moved patients outside, footage by Kompas TV showed, while Kompas.com reported at least one landslide.

Indonesia's geophysical agency BMKG recorded the first earthquake at 4:58 a.m. (11:58 p.m. Kyiv time) at a depth of 15 km, followed by several aftershocks.

In 1992, the same area was hit by a magnitude 7.5 earthquake that caused significant destruction, the agency said.

The Australian Tsunami Warning Centre said the undersea earthquake "will pose no tsunami threat to mainland Australia, islands or territories".

Indonesia lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire—a seismically active zone where various tectonic plates meet, causing a large number of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.