Jakarta, August 24: A powerful earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale struck the Banda Sea near Indonesia on Monday. According to the National Earthquake Center, the quake’s epicenter was located approximately 37 kilometers deep. The Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) also confirmed the seismic event.
The earthquake occurred at 7:40 PM local time. Just days earlier, on August 18, a 6.1 magnitude quake hit near Nias Island in North Sumatra. Reports from Xinhua News Agency indicate that there have been no immediate reports of casualties or damage.
The agency noted that the earlier earthquake struck at 1:02 PM local time, with its epicenter about 147 kilometers southeast of South Nias Regency, at a depth of 29 kilometers. Fortunately, there was no threat of a tsunami following this quake.
This recent earthquake follows a more severe tremor earlier this month, when a 7.7 magnitude quake hit East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) province, resulting in significant damage and loss of life. The National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) reported that the death toll from that quake has risen to 68. BNPB’s Prevention Deputy Abdul Muhri stated in a press conference that fatalities included 26 in Manggarai Regency, 24 in East Manggarai, eight in Nagekeo, four in Sikka, and two each in Ende, West Manggarai, and Nagekeo, with 213 others injured.
Since the last major quake, at least 1,576 aftershocks have been recorded. The epicenter of this quake was located about 30 kilometers northeast of Mbe in Nagekeo Regency, at a depth of 15 kilometers. The tremor caused severe damage to 914 homes, moderate damage to 126, and minor damage to 317. Additionally, 93 educational institutions, 36 healthcare centers, and 38 government offices were affected.
The Health Ministry has deployed two temporary field hospitals to Manggarai and Nagekeo, along with medical and crisis management teams to the impacted areas. Meanwhile, electricity services have been restored to 99.5% in Western and Eastern Flores Islands, while telecommunications services have been reinstated to 95.4% in Flores. The Indonesian military has also been actively distributing relief supplies in hard-hit areas. Following the earthquake on August 15, the East Nusa Tenggara provincial government declared a 14-day emergency response status.
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