The death toll from a powerful earthquake that struck eastern Indonesia rose to 68 on Monday, as thousands of people on Flores island remained cut off from aid days after the disaster, officials said.
Berton SP Panjaitan, an official with Indonesia’s national disaster mitigation agency (BNPB), said late Monday that the toll had climbed from 54, with more than 200 people injured.
The 7.7-magnitude quake struck East Nusa Tenggara province before dawn on Saturday at a depth of 10 km, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Tsunami warnings were issued and later lifted as residents fled in panic. The agency has recorded 1,576 aftershocks since the initial quake, though only a small share have been felt.
More than 1,300 homes were damaged across the province, with nearly 250 destroyed on Flores island alone. Around 5,000 people have been forced into temporary shelters. The provincial governor declared a 14-day state of emergency on Sunday.
Rescue efforts have been hampered by landslide-blocked roads, particularly on the small, remote Palue Island near the epicentre, which aid workers reached only late Sunday after a difficult sea and land journey. “The roads are steep and many were blocked by landslides. It was a near-death journey,” said Marselus Yugo Amboro, deputy police chief of Sikka regency, whose team was among the first to reach the island.
Many residents spent Monday night camped in the open under tarpaulins outside collapsed homes. The disaster coincided with Indonesia’s Independence Day; in Jakarta, President Prabowo Subianto asked citizens to observe a moment of silence for those affected during the national celebration.
