BMKG: Nine tsunami detection devices functioning well in North Maluku-North Sulawesi
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has assured that nine tsunami detection devices installed in the regions of North Maluku (Malut) and North Sulawesi (Sulut) are functioning well in monitoring the ongoing impacts of the 7.6 magnitude earthquake that occurred on Thursday morning.
“The multi-disaster early warning system, or Multi-Hazard Early Warning System, which has been developed over the past four years, has proven to be effective in this situation,” said BMKG Head Teuku Faisal Fathani during a press conference in Jakarta on Thursday.
He assessed that the tsunami early warning system operated in accordance with standard operational procedures since the earthquake occurred, allowing the agency to deliver initial information on the quake and potential tsunami less than three minutes after the event.
Subsequently, a second early warning was issued eight minutes later, before the tsunami alert was finally lifted two hours after the estimated time of arrival (ETA) of the first wave.
“With tsunami wave heights ranging from 0.25 to 0.75 metres, but in certain locations, the height may increase due to the complex geographical conditions in North Maluku and North Sulawesi, such as the presence of small islands and bays,” said Teuku Faisal Fathani.
As such, he continued, the government is heavily relying on these existing sensory devices to reduce the significant risks of disaster impacts on the community.
In addition, BMKG has recorded quite high aftershock activity up to 12:00 WIB, with a total of 93 events and magnitudes reaching 5.5 to 6.
Experts at BMKG believe this condition still needs to be vigilant because the potential for aftershocks is estimated to last for one to two weeks ahead, depending on the dynamics of seismic activity in the region.
“Monitoring will continue to be carried out because aftershock activity remains quite high. It is hoped that with good coordination, the impacts on lives and damage can be minimised as much as possible,” he stated.