7.7 earthquake hits Indonesia’s Flores island, tsunami warnings issued

A powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off the north coast of Indonesia's Flores island early Saturday morning local time, prompting authorities to issue tsunami warnings across multiple provinces and urge coastal communities to evacuate immediately.

The Quake

The earthquake hit at 5:58 a.m. local time (2158 GMT on Friday) at a relatively shallow depth, with the epicentre located in the Flores Sea off the northern coast of the island, approximately 400 km southeast of Makassar. Indonesia's Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) measured the event at magnitude 7.7, a reading confirmed by the United States Geological Survey. Germany's GFZ national geoscience centre reported the quake at magnitude 7.67.dimsumdaily+2

The quake was initially estimated at magnitude 6.9 before being upgraded as seismological agencies compiled additional data. Depth estimates varied between monitoring networks, ranging from 10 to 35 km — typical in the first hours after a major event.7news+2

A second earthquake measuring 6.2 to 6.3 magnitude struck the same region just 15 minutes later at 6:13 a.m. local time, compounding concerns. The USGS recorded several additional aftershocks, with more expected in the days and weeks ahead.news.yahoo+1

Tsunami Warning and Evacuations

BMKG issued an early tsunami warning covering East Nusa Tenggara, South Sulawesi, West Nusa Tenggara, and Southeast Sulawesi. The warning was based on computer simulations conducted by the Indonesian Tsunami Early Warning System. Locals in coastal towns were urged to "immediately guide their communities for evacuation," according to Australian broadcaster 7NEWS.aa+2

Initial estimates indicate strong shaking likely affected most communities on Flores island, which is home to several popular tourist destinations near the city of Maumere.7news+1

Seismic History

The Flores region sits along a seismically active segment of the Indonesian archipelago where large earthquakes are not uncommon. An earthquake in December 1992 struck the same area with similar intensity; the shaking and subsequent tsunami killed more than 2,500 people. In April, a 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck in the nearby Molucca Sea off Indonesia's Ternate island, killing at least one person.thesun+2