The incident, which also affected the neighboring country of Timor Leste, adds to a long list of natural disasters that have beset Indonesia this year. In January, floods overwhelmed parts of South Kalimantan and displaced tens of thousands.

The President said he had ordered national disaster mitigation agencies, relevant Cabinet members and national security forces to evacuate affected residents and contain the effects of the disasters with haste.

“I ask that disaster management efforts, including the distribution of health assistance, logistical support and basic needs for the evacuees, as well as infrastructure improvements, be carried out quickly and well,” Jokowi said in a video message that aired on Monday.

The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) reported on Monday that the disaster had affected 2,600 residents in one city and 10 regencies of East Nusa Tenggara, as well as 28,000 residents in three regencies of West Nusa Tenggara.

As of Monday afternoon, 68 casualties had been recorded in the East Flores, Lembata, Ende and Alor regencies of East Nusa Tenggara, and two casualties had been recorded in the Bima, Dompu and North Lombok regencies of West Nusa Tenggara. These numbers may rise as authorities verify incoming reports.

Affected residents have fled to village halls and schools.

About 1,000 houses were buried in mud or damaged, at least five bridges were swept away and one ship sank. Lembata, Alor, Malaka and Adonara Island were among the hardest-hit areas, according to the BNPB.

The agency said the central government had not decided whether it would declare the incident a national disaster, despite calls from several parties to do so.

“There has been no [discussion of it],” spokesman Raditya Jati told The Jakarta Post on Monday morning.

The Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) has called on the Jokowi administration to declare a state of emergency, considering the low levels of support in the affected areas, the number of victims, the extent of infrastructure damage and the limited local capacity to address the crisis.

Read also: More than 90 dead in Flores, Timor Leste floods, dozens missing

House of Representatives Commission IX deputy chair Melkiades Laka Lena called on the central government to immediately declare the event a national disaster, adding that local disaster mitigation efforts might not be enough.

BNPB head Doni Monardo said the disaster had been caused by tropical cyclone Seroja, which led to heavy rain and massive waves in the area. He added that the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) had been warning of the cyclone since Friday.

The BMKG said on Monday that the Seroja tropical cyclone would strengthen and move in a southwesterly direction away from Indonesia until at least Tuesday. The agency warned people who resided or worked along the coast to remain vigilant and urged small vessels not to leave port.

The BNPB acknowledged that logistical support for affected residents had been constrained by geographical and weather conditions. Strong winds and massive waves, for example, had made it difficult to access Adonara Island by sea, and a lack of equipment had hampered the rescue of victims buried in mud.

In addition to the BNPB, Doni said, local administrations and representatives from the Social Affairs Ministry, the Health Ministry and the Public Works and Housing Ministry were involved in the mitigation efforts.

“We will provide as much assistance as possible to people who are injured and people who are displaced,” he said, adding that 20 public kitchens had been prepared.

Over the past decade, East Nusa Tenggara has been hit by two major floods: one in South Central Timor in November 2010 that damaged 159 houses and left 31 people dead, the other in Belu regency in April 2011, which damaged 3,277 houses.

East Flores Regent Antonius Hubertus Gege Hadjon said that despite the weather warning from the BMKG, the disaster had caught locals off guard because it had reached places that did not typically flood. Poor communication networks had also hampered the disaster mitigation, he added.

The Social Affairs Ministry has distributed Rp 2.6 billion (US$179,000) for basic needs and the compensation of victims in East Flores and Lembata, as well as Rp 1.1 billion for Bima. The ministry has said compensation for other areas will follow.