UMY KKN Students Help Residents After M 7.7 Earthquake Strikes NTT
An earthquake measuring magnitude 7.7 struck East Nusa Tenggara on Saturday (15/8/2026). Sixty-one students from Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (UMY) undertaking community service programmes (KKN) in the Manggarai region helped with the evacuation and treatment of affected residents.
The students were carrying out their KKN programmes through two groups: Gema Pelita Nusantara (GPN) and Proyek Ekspedisi Nusantara (PENA). The GPN group comprised 26 students stationed in Macang Tanggar Village, Komodo District, West Manggarai Regency. The PENA group consisted of 35 students serving in Nanga Mbaling Village, Sambi Rampas District, East Manggarai Regency.
According to reports from the UMY KKN students as of Saturday afternoon, there were no fatalities around the KKN locations. However, several residents suffered minor injuries after panicking during the earthquake.
“Most of the injured were women because they panicked during the first quake, and many fell and slipped,” said UMY KKN student representative Didan Oktanova Hermawan, known as Awan, in a written statement received by detikJogja on Saturday (15/8/2026).
The students then provided first aid to residents using first-aid kits they had brought. This was supported by emergency response training provided by the university before the students were deployed to their KKN locations. Each KKN group also had an internal health division responsible for handling emergency situations in the field.
Awan said the first earthquake occurred at around 05.58 WITA. When the quake struck, some students were on cooking duty and preparing for a morning briefing. After the main quake, several aftershocks were felt by students and residents, making the community increasingly alert.
According to Awan, seawater along the coast was observed receding. Fishermen then took their boats out to sea. “The local hamlet head immediately instructed residents and us students to head to the hills once a tsunami threat was detected,” he said.
During the evacuation, vulnerable groups were prioritised and transported using open-bed vehicles. Other residents, along with the students, walked to the evacuation points.
In addition to helping with evacuation and providing first aid, the UMY KKN students also helped meet the logistical needs of residents at evacuation sites. Rice supplies brought by the students were used to meet the communal food needs of residents. As of the time of the interview, logistical assistance from the government or the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) had not yet arrived at the KKN group locations.
“The logistics happened to still come from us because the local government had not yet arrived,” Awan said.
UMY continued to monitor the condition of students in the earthquake-affected areas. The university’s Directorate of Research and Community Service communicated with the students and asked field supervisors to conduct assessments. A representative of the directorate, Dr Al-Afik, M.Kep., said students were also asked to immediately report the locations of resident evacuation points. This information would then be forwarded to the Muhammadiyah Disaster Management Center (MDMC) to support coordination with the local BPBD and the nearest PKU Muhammadiyah Hospital. The measures were taken to ensure student safety while supporting the handling of residents affected by the earthquake around the UMY KKN locations.