2,000 Residents Evacuate After M 7.7 Earthquake in NTT, Central Government Deploys
Panic gripped East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) after a powerful tectonic earthquake measuring magnitude 7.7 struck Nagekeo Regency on Saturday morning (15/8/2026) at 04:58 WIB. Responding to the tsunami early warning and severe tremors, around 2,000 residents of Nagekeo Regency immediately carried out self-evacuation to higher ground to save themselves.
The residents’ emergency response was carried out amid the threat of sea waves and aftershocks. Not only in Nagekeo, residents in various coastal areas of NTT, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), and even South Sulawesi also rushed out of their homes and evacuated.
Seeing this emergency situation, Head of the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) Lieutenant General TNI Suharyanto together with Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture (Menko PMK) Pratikno confirmed they would immediately fly to the affected location to lead the handling on the ground directly.
Helicopter Deployed, Nagekeo Access Paralysed and Power Out
To support the handling of evacuated residents and the distribution of aid to isolated areas, BNPB deployed one operational helicopter. This air route support is crucial given the archipelagic geography of NTT.
As of Saturday morning, the situation on the ground remained dynamic. Joint officers continued to handle the impact of the earthquake in Nagekeo Regency, where the electricity supply was reported to be completely out and traffic routes experienced severe congestion due to the flow of residents evacuating.
Meanwhile, BMKG officially ended the Tsunami Early Warning at 07:31 WIB after tide gauge monitoring results showed no further dangerous rise in sea levels.
Update on Casualties and Infrastructure Damage
BNKG and BNPB updated the casualty validation data in the field as of 08:00 WIB. BNPB confirmed one person died and four people were injured in Sikka and Nagekeo Regencies.
Editor’s note: BNPB apologised for the revision of the initial report which had mentioned two fatalities, after factual verification by the team in the field confirmed the number of deaths was one person.
In addition to casualties and mass evacuation of residents, preliminary data recorded a number of infrastructure damages:
Settlements: 2 houses heavily damaged, 1 moderately damaged, and 2 lightly damaged.
Public and logistics facilities: 1 Bulog warehouse affected, 3 public facilities lightly damaged, and 6 government offices suffered damage.
Other affected areas: In Bima City, NTB, 1 household (6 people) was affected by the tremors.
Central Government Guarantees Logistics Assistance
BNPB emphasised that emergency response teams have been deployed to assist regional BPBD in conducting rapid assessments, verifying impacts, and fulfilling the basic needs of thousands of residents still staying at evacuation posts or safe areas.
The public is urged to remain calm but increase vigilance against aftershocks, not force themselves to enter cracked or structurally damaged buildings, and always filter information from official government channels.