Basarnas: East Manggarai Severely Affected, 55 Dead
Head of the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas), Air Marshal Mohammad Syafii, together with Home Affairs Minister Tito Karnavian, directly inspected the command post in Ronting Village, North Lamba Leda District, East Manggarai Regency, on Monday (17/8).
The visit was conducted to monitor the handling operations following the 7.7 magnitude earthquake that struck Flores on Saturday (15/8).
East Manggarai is one of the areas most severely affected by the disaster. Based on coordination data with the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) up to 15:00 WITA, 187 people have been recorded as victims, comprising 55 deaths and 132 injuries.
“East Manggarai Regency is one of the areas quite severely affected by the earthquake. We continue to strive to ensure that search and rescue operations run optimally to assist the affected communities,” Syafii said in an official statement on Monday (17/8).
While inspecting the evacuation post, the Basarnas chief provided psychological support as well as safety advice to residents.
He urged the public to remain vigilant against potential aftershocks and to avoid buildings at risk of collapse. Syafii also stressed the importance of cross-sector solidarity in handling the disaster.
“We must help each other and strengthen one another. In conditions like this, cooperation between the government, SAR personnel, and the community is essential so that the handling process can proceed properly,” he said.
In addition to inspecting the residents’ post, Syafii accompanied the Home Affairs Minister in visiting the SAR post in the area. The Basarnas chief affirmed the agency’s commitment to maintaining search and rescue operations around the clock across all affected areas.
On the third day of SAR operations, Basarnas deployed 119 personnel spread across various regencies: 11 in Nagekeo, 5 in Ende, 12 in East Manggarai, 21 in Sikka, 9 in West Manggarai (plus 23 personnel from the central team), and 17 personnel in the Reo area of Manggarai Regency, together with the crew of KN SAR 250. Air support was also present with the deployment of 7 crew members of helicopter HR 3604.
Overall, the disaster response involves 711 combined personnel from various elements: the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI), the National Police (Polri), BPBD, the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI), the Ministry of Transportation, Pelindo, Pelni, local governments, and local communities.
The Maumere SAR Office, together with local SAR potential, continues to conduct search, evacuation, and monitoring in the field with centrally coordinated personnel and equipment support.