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View all search resultsSearch for quake victims underway on Independence Day
Residents of villages in Flores Island in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) hit by a deadly earthquake that killed at least 54 people were awaiting aid on Monday as rescuers prepared to comb through collapsed buildings in search of people trapped beneath the rubble.
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People in a makeshift hospital tent outside a damaged hospital, in the aftermath of an earthquake in Nagekeo, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), on August 17, 2026. (Reuters/Edgar Su)
R
esidents of villages in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) hit by a deadly earthquake that killed at least 54 people were awaiting aid on Monday as rescuers prepared to comb through collapsed buildings in search of people trapped beneath the rubble.
Thousands have been evacuated following the country's deadliest disaster since a 2022 quake killed hundreds in West Java, with many sheltering in tents outdoors and afraid to return to their homes due to fears of aftershocks.
The tremor has cast a grim shadow over Indonesia's Independence Day celebrations and residents of NTT have been jolted by nearly 1,600 aftershocks in the province as of Monday, according to the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG). The agency reported a 5.6 quake in the region on Monday morning.
The quake also caused landslides and blocked roads across NTT, including in Sikka and Manggarai regencies.
In the parking lot of a damaged health center littered with tents and hospital beds in a village close to the quake-affected Ende region, Firmus Woge, a 64-year-old farmer, was being treated for his asthma, aggravated by the panic setting in as the buildings around him continued to rattle, Reuters reported.
He said he had difficulty breathing overnight. Though better on Monday morning, the fresh aftershocks again took his breath away.
"I felt better last night and this morning but it's getting worse again after this morning's quake," he said, gasping for breath.
The number of people unable to return to their homes had risen to 12,800 by Monday morning, dispersed among several towns on Flores island, Berton Suar Pelita Panjaitan from the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) told AFP.
Search to continue
The search will continue on Monday, authorities said.
Fathur Rahman, chief at the rescue office in Maumere, Sikka's capital, told Reuters on Monday the search will focus on aerial monitoring for anyone missing.
Rescuers will use an extrication device and a helicopter, Fathur said, adding there were no reports of people missing and no challenges hampering the search.
Authorities readied planes to deliver aid such as food and tents, BNPB chief Suharyanto said late on Sunday. The quake damaged around 500 homes, he said.
Indonesia will also build an emergency field hospital in several areas, said Deputy Health Minister Benjamin Paulus Octavianus.
Neurosurgeons and orthopedic surgeons are needed to treat head trauma and broken bones, Benjamin said.
‘I don’t think about that anymore’
In Jakarta, about 1,500 kilometers west of the disaster zone, President Prabowo Subianto presided on Monday over celebrations marking Indonesia's 81st anniversary of Independence Day.
Meanwhile, residents fleeing from an Ende village in fear of tsunamis brought their clothes and mattresses to higher ground.
Asked about how he felt about the Independence Day celebrations, one resident, Gervas, 42, said: "I don't think about that anymore […] I just think about the safety of my wife and 4-year-old twins."
