Death Toll Climbs as Relief Operations Continue
The death toll from a powerful earthquake that hit eastern Indonesia has reached 100, according to the country's disaster agency chief. The 7.7-magnitude quake struck the province of East Nusa Tenggara on August 15, and the toll rose as more people undergoing treatment succumbed to their injuries, disaster agency chief Suharyanto said in a press conference on Monday (August 24). He added that more than 1,600 people were injured.
Relief operations continued for a 10th day, with authorities distributing aid using helicopters, trucks, and motorcycles, Suharyanto said.
The quake was followed by thousands of aftershocks, damaging more than 73,000 homes and forcing the evacuation of about 180,000 people, according to the disaster agency chief.
Earlier Figures and Damage Assessment
Earlier reports, citing Indonesia's National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), put the death toll at 68 as of August 17. According to the Antara news agency, BNPB recorded at least 199 injuries and almost 10,000 people forced to evacuate.
The earthquake struck off Flores Island in eastern Indonesia on August 15. As many as 2,400 houses, dozens of educational facilities, places of worship, and government offices were damaged. More than 5,400 locals are staying in centralized evacuation shelters, and authorities have sent 52 metric tons of aid to those affected.
Context and International Response
The earthquake is Indonesia's deadliest since 2022, when a shallow 5.6-magnitude quake killed hundreds in West Java. Indonesia, an archipelago of 290 million people, straddles the "Pacific Ring of Fire," a seismically active zone where tectonic plates meet and earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are frequent.
The Russian embassy in Indonesia offered condolences over the death toll and damage on its Telegram channel.