A powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off Indonesia’s Flores region early Saturday, killing at least 40 people, injuring dozens and causing widespread destruction.
The United States Geological Survey said the quake struck at 5:58 a.m. local time at a depth of 10 kilometres (six miles). Its epicentre was about 68 kilometres (42 miles) north-northwest of Ende in East Nusa Tenggara province.
The earthquake triggered landslides and a small tsunami. Indonesia’s meteorological agency said 235 aftershocks had been recorded by Saturday afternoon, including one measuring as strong as magnitude 6.2.
A 1.61-metre (5.3-foot) tsunami swept into Ngada village in East Manggarai, leaving homes and infrastructure surrounded by mud and debris. Fishing boats were also stranded inland after the waters receded.
East Nusa Tenggara Police Chief Rudi Darmoko said the earthquake caused severe damage and collapsed buildings. Power outages and communication disruptions have made it difficult to assess the full extent of the damage and coordinate rescue efforts.
Landslides in Ende regency also blocked the Trans-Flores highway, a roughly 700-kilometre (435-mile) road that crosses the mountainous island from Labuan Bajo to Larantuka.
National Search and Rescue Agency chief Fathur Rahman said rescuers had recovered at least 40 bodies, mostly from the devastated regencies of Sikka, Manggarai and East Manggarai. Nearly 50 people were taken to hospitals.
Rahman warned that the death toll could rise as landslides have buried or isolated remote communities across six regencies on Flores Island, complicating search and rescue operations.
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