BNPB: NTT Earthquake Death Toll Reaches 136, 70 Per Cent of Houses Verified
The National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) has recorded an accumulated death toll of 136 people due to the earthquake tremors in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), 88 of whom died indirectly or following medical treatment.
Speaking at a press conference in Jakarta on Thursday, the Acting Head of the BNPB Centre for Disaster Data, Information, and Communication, Berton SP Panjaitan, expressed deep condolences for the loss of lives following the disaster that occurred on 15 August.
“We express our deepest condolences regarding the deaths of several Indonesian citizens due to both the direct and indirect impacts of the earthquake,” he said.
Berton explained that in addition to the loss of life, the earthquake tremors caused massive physical damage, with a total of 102,384 residential units affected, categorised into heavy, moderate, and light damage.
To ensure the accuracy of the distribution of housing recovery stimulus aid, a joint team from the BNPB and local governments is currently conducting massive field verification of the level of damage to residents’ homes.
The BNPB Directorate of Operations Control reported that the progress of data collection and physical damage verification is showing significant development, with mapping across all affected areas currently reaching approximately 70 per cent of the total target building units.
“The target is that the entire series of physical data verification processes for damaged houses can be fully completed by next week, so that the stage for disbursing repair assistance can be executed immediately,” he stated.
Meanwhile, he added that to support the basic living needs of residents in evacuation centres, the BNPB has distributed emergency logistics aid totalling 2,178 tonnes, distributed through two main posts in the NTT region.
The logistics distribution is split between two primary distribution hubs: 1,379 tonnes are centred through the post in Labuan Bajo, West Manggarai Regency, and 664 tonnes are distributed through the Maumere area in Sikka Regency.