Indonesia earthquake triggers tsunami warnings

An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.7 jolted the waters near Mbay in East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia, early Saturday morning, prompting the national meteorology agency to issue tsunami early warnings. The quake, centered about 30 kilometers offshore at a depth of 10 to 15 kilometers, was initially assessed at magnitude 7.0 before being upgraded.

The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) warned of potential tsunami waves, initially at level one and later raised to level two. The alert covered coastal regions across East Nusa Tenggara, South Sulawesi, West Nusa Tenggara, and Southeast Sulawesi. Specific areas in East Nusa Tenggara, including northern Manggarai, Ngada, West Manggarai, Ende, and Sikka, were placed on alert. In South Sulawesi, Selayar, Jeneponto, and Bantaeng were included.

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The earthquake startled us because it happened during the busy time of preparing children for school.

BMKG later confirmed the detection of tsunami waves, with recordings of 0.19 meters in Sikka and 0.36 meters in Labuan Bajo, and 0.17 meters in Dompu. The tremors were felt across Flores Island, parts of Sumba, Adonara, and Solor, and even reached Lombok Island.

Residents in Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, described being startled by the shaking, which occurred during the busy morning routine of preparing children for school. Veronika recounted the tremors feeling like a long swing that caused dizziness. Another resident, Adam, woke up to his belongings shaking, expressing hope for the safety of those near the earthquake's epicenter.

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When I was sleeping, suddenly everything in the room was shaking. Turns out it was an earthquake. Hope nothing bad happens in the epicenter area.