Search team clears landslide-blocked access, expands NTT quake search

“The team has successfully opened land access in the Reo area, which was previously cut off by landslides,” he confirmed.

Prakoso explained that clearing the route has enabled a joint team comprising personnel from the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI), police, volunteers, and the local government to conduct searches and evacuations in previously isolated affected areas.

Restoring road access is also crucial to accelerating the delivery of medical supplies and reaching survivors in remote areas who require emergency assistance, he added.

The Maumere Search and Rescue Office reported that, based on preliminary data collection and verification as of 8:30 a.m. Central Indonesian Time (WITA), 112 people had been affected by the earthquake, including 48 fatalities and 64 people who sustained serious or minor injuries.

The number of victims remains subject to change and could increase as search and rescue operations continue in the field in coordination with the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) and local SAR personnel.

“The public is also urged to follow the directions of officers in the field and obtain information only from official and authorized sources,” Prakoso emphasized.

Previously, a magnitude-7.7 earthquake struck Nagekeo District, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), on Saturday morning, Aug. 15.

Following the earthquake, the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) issued a tsunami early warning, which was later lifted at 7:30 a.m. Western Indonesia Time (WIB).

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Translator: M. Riezko Bima, Resinta Sulistiyandari