BNPB Data: 14 People Killed Following M7 Earthquake in NTT
The National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) has reported that 14 people have died as a result of the magnitude 7 earthquake that shook East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) on Saturday morning (15/8).
According to BNPB data as of 12.30 WIB, 14 people were recorded dead, two seriously injured, and 11 others lightly injured. However, the data is still being collected, verified, and validated in the field.
“The temporary death toll is recorded at three people in Sikka Regency, six people in Manggarai Regency, and five people in East Manggarai Regency. Meanwhile, injuries have been reported in Sikka Regency, Nagekeo Regency, Manggarai Regency, and East Manggarai Regency,” said Berton Panjaitan, Acting Head of the BNPB Data, Information, and Disaster Communication Centre, in a statement on Saturday (15/8).
He said the casualty figures remain provisional and may change as verification and validation are carried out by the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) and related parties. Berton added that any updates would be based on official field data collection.
In addition to the casualties, around 2,000 residents have fled or evacuated independently following the strong tremors and the tsunami early warning issued after the main earthquake.
BNPB also recorded 54 heavily damaged houses, nine moderately damaged houses, and 11 lightly damaged houses. Damage was also reported to five health facilities, one educational facility, one Bulog warehouse, three places of worship, and six government offices.
“Manggarai Regency is one of the areas with quite significant damage. A total of 29 houses were heavily damaged, nine moderately damaged, and nine lightly damaged,” Berton explained.
“In addition, five health facilities and one educational facility also suffered damage. Meanwhile, in East Manggarai Regency, 23 houses were heavily damaged,” he added.
In Nagekeo Regency, the provisional impact includes two heavily damaged houses, one moderately damaged house, and two lightly damaged houses. In addition, two places of worship suffered light damage and five government offices were affected.
According to him, the current conditions in the area include reported traffic congestion and ongoing power outages.
Earlier, a magnitude 7 earthquake struck Mbay Village, Nagekeo Regency, on Saturday at 05.58 WITA. The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) issued a tsunami early warning for several coastal areas in NTT following the earthquake.
The earthquake’s epicentre was located at coordinates 8.41 degrees south latitude and 121.39 degrees east longitude, approximately 30 kilometres offshore from Mbay-Nagekeo at a depth of 15 kilometres.
Until 07.03 WITA, BMKG maintained a level 2 tsunami early warning. The warning covered NTT, South Sulawesi, West Nusa Tenggara, and Southeast Sulawesi.
In NTT, areas placed on alert status included northern Manggarai, northern Ngada, northern West Manggarai, northern Ende, and northern Sikka.
Meanwhile, areas in South Sulawesi placed on alert status were Selayar, Jeneponto, and Bantaeng.