Magnitude 7.7 quake off Indonesia's Flores kills at least five
A 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck off Flores early Saturday, causing building collapses, power outages and five confirmed deaths, while a tsunami warning was later lifted.
A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off the coast of Indonesia’s Flores region at 5:58 a.m. local time on Saturday, with the US Geological Survey reporting a shallow depth of 10 km and an epicenter about 68 km north-northwest of Ende in East Nusa Tenggara province. The tremor triggered several aftershocks and led authorities to issue, then cancel, a tsunami warning after monitoring showed no significant sea-level rise.
Police chief Rudi Darmoko said preliminary counts show two fatalities in Sikka Regency and three in Manggarai Regency, and that power outages are hampering rescue and information-gathering efforts. > "We are continuing to collect reports of damages and casualties, but there are communication disruptions," Darmoko said.
Local hospitals evacuated patients and moved equipment outdoors as a precaution, setting up temporary treatment areas. Residents reported extensive building damage, including the collapse of a waiting room at the Maumere port terminal, and a seminary roof that forced students and staff to flee. > "Our students and nuns ran out in panic beneath a collapsing roof," Rev. Guidelbertus Tanga, rector of St. Peter Major Seminary, said, adding that a priest suffered a broken leg.
The quake was felt across Flores and in parts of neighboring West Nusa Tenggara and southern Sulawesi. Indonesian officials initially warned coastal communities in four provinces to stay away from beaches and riverbanks, but the warning was lifted after the agency confirmed no tsunami threat.