Jakarta.- Nearly 10,000 Indonesians are waiting in shelters and makeshift refuges for aid after having to abandon their homes on Saturday due to the 7.7 magnitude earthquake that struck the coast of the island of Flores, in the east of the archipelago, leaving a toll of 68 dead and more than 200 injured.
The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) indicated this Monday that there are 9,963 people displaced from their homes, while the NGO Save the Children told EFE that many are spending the night in front of their houses in the most devastated areas of the East Nusa Tenggara province.
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Since the earthquake—whose epicenter was located 62 kilometers from the Ende district—nearly a thousand aftershocks have been recorded in this area of Indonesia, including a 5.7-magnitude earthquake that shook Flores again this Monday, where about 2 million people live, without a tsunami alert being triggered.
The new tremor occurred at 8:46 local time (00:46 GMT) at a depth of 35.6 kilometers, with its epicenter 42.1 kilometers north-northwest of Ende, reported the United States Geological Survey (USGS), which records seismic activity worldwide.
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Updated balances
In the last 24 hours, the Indonesian government raised the total death toll from this earthquake from 53 to 68, which also left 213 people with injuries of varying severity, while rescue teams continue to search for survivors, without the authorities having offered any number of missing persons.
According to Indonesian aid groups, 914 homes were practically destroyed in cities like Ende -the most populous town on Flores, with nearly 90,000 inhabitants- and 93 schools and 36 health centers suffered partial or severe damage.
This report, released by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, includes data on minor damage to numerous roads in the province, located about 600 kilometers from the tourist island of Bali.
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In response to the growing magnitude of the disaster, the provincial government declared a state of emergency in the region for the next 14 days, with the aim of coordinating aid with central authorities. Similar measures have also been officially adopted in the affected districts and cities.
Risks and aid
According to estimates by Save the Children Indonesia, more than 8,000 children “face security risks” due to having lost their homes, their places of study, the sources of income of their parents or legal guardians, or due to the delay in the arrival of humanitarian aid in some hard-to-reach areas.
“People are distressed and scared, especially children and the elderly,” the non-governmental organization stressed in a statement to EFE.
The NGO urged authorities and humanitarian organizations to provide a comprehensive aid scheme that prioritizes shelter and food, but also includes other aspects such as health and recreation.
Although the Prabowo Subianto government has not requested international aid, China offered to provide assistance this Monday.
Meanwhile, Pope Leo XIV sent a message of spiritual solidarity and closeness to those affected in Indonesia, the country with the most Muslims in the world, in which he “encourages ecclesial and civil authorities to continue providing humanitarian assistance and prays for the emergency personnel dedicated to recovery efforts.”
Flores is an exception in the archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, with a majority Catholic population.
Indonesia sits on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, an area of high seismic and volcanic activity where numerous earthquakes are recorded each year, most of them moderate.
