Ternate City Government Declares Disaster Emergency Response Following Earthquake
The Ternate City Government has declared a disaster emergency response status following the earthquake that occurred in the waters off Batang Dua with a magnitude of 7.6 on Thursday, 2 April 2026, at approximately 07:48 WIT. This step was taken to accelerate coordinated actions in handling the earthquake disaster.
Ternate Mayor Tauhid Soleman stated that the declaration of the disaster emergency response status begins today, Thursday, 2 April 2026, for the next seven days. Under this status, the government will carry out initial mitigation efforts such as data collection and aid distribution during the emergency response period.
“Today, I will sign the decree on the disaster emergency response status. I have also instructed the Regional Disaster Management Agency to move to the disaster sites in Batang Dua, Moti, and Ternate Island,” said Tauhid, who was met by Tempo after a disaster response meeting in Ternate on Thursday, 2 April 2026.
According to Tauhid, based on the information received, several basic infrastructures such as places of worship, schools, and residents’ homes in the Batang Dua and Ternate Island areas of Ternate City were reported damaged after the earthquake. Some schools have even chosen to dismiss their students due to the earthquake.
“The public even panicked when the earthquake occurred, but the reports I have received now indicate that things have returned to normal,” Tauhid stated.
Head of the Ternate Regional Disaster Response Task Force, Rizal Marsaoly, revealed that after the declaration of the regional disaster emergency response status, his team has conducted a rapid impact assessment and activated the emergency response post located at the former Mayor’s office in Ternate. Today, the task force will distribute essential needs assistance to disaster victims in the Batang Dua Island area.
“We have also deployed field teams to record victims and infrastructure affected by the earthquake. Our teams are still working at this time,” Rizal said.
Previously, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.6 shook Ternate and Tidore. The epicentre, located at coordinates 1.25 North Latitude – 126.27 East Longitude with a depth of 62 kilometres, briefly caused panic among residents. The earthquake was reported to be felt in Ternate City, Tidore Islands City, Sofifi City in North Maluku, and Bitung, Manado, and Minahasa in North Sulawesi.