BNPB Urges Earthquake-Affected Regions in North Sulawesi and North Maluku to Declare Emergency Response Status

JAKARTA - The Head of the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), Lieutenant General TNI Suharyanto, has requested that the regencies and cities affected by the earthquake in North Sulawesi (Sulut) and North Maluku (Malut) immediately declare an emergency response status.

“We wish to remind you that, first and foremost, we request that all affected regencies and cities declare an emergency status,” Suharyanto stated during an online coordination meeting on handling the Sulut-Malut earthquake, on Thursday (2/4/2026).

“The emergency response status has nothing to do with a local leader’s capability in managing disasters. We agree and understand that a disaster is an extraordinary event; no matter who the official is or how capable the leader, they certainly cannot handle it alone,” Suharyanto added.

With the declaration of the emergency response status, the central government can provide maximum assistance to the affected regions.

“Because, of course, every form of assistance from the central government must be accountable in terms of financial administration. The way to do that, the requirement, is by declaring an emergency status,” Suharyanto explained.

The Head of the Data, Information, and Disaster Communication Centre of the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), Abdul Muhari, explained that the earthquake’s epicentre was at coordinates 1.25° N and 126.25° E, with a depth of 62 kilometres.

“The shaking was felt very strongly for 10 to 20 seconds in Bitung City and its surroundings, and also strongly in Ternate City, North Maluku Province, causing the public to panic and rush out of their homes,” Abdul stated in his official remarks on Thursday (2/4/2026).

Abdul explained that both aftershocks were centred at sea and did not pose a tsunami risk, but were felt by residents in the affected areas.

“Based on monitoring from the early warning system, tsunami waves with relatively small heights have been detected, namely around 0.3 metres in West Halmahera at 06:08 WIB and 0.2 metres in Bitung at 06:15 WIB,” Abdul said.

Currently, the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has lifted the early tsunami warning in North Sulawesi and North Maluku.