Kupang, E Nusa Tenggara (ANTARA) - The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) installed three earthquake and tsunami early warning receiver systems (WRS) in the Kalabahi area of Alor District, East Nusa Tenggara Province, which is one of Indonesia's quake-impacted zones.
"The BMKG installed three WRS-New Generation systems in Alor District this year at the district office, search and rescue office, and geophysics station," Head of the Alor Geophysics Station Sumawan informed ANTARA on Thursday.
These WRS systems play a crucial role in disseminating early warnings of earthquakes and tsunamis, as Alor District's area was prone to earthquakes and tsunamis in the Indonesian archipelago, he remarked.
Indonesia's earthquake zones spread from the islands of Sumatra, Java, Bali, Lombok, Flores, and Alor to the Banda Sea as well as the islands of Seram, Sulawesi, Maluku, and Papua, he stated.
Located on the Circum-Pacific Belt, also called the Ring of Fire, the meeting points of several tectonic plates where frequent volcanic and seismic activities occur, Indonesia is susceptible to natural disasters, including earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
On June 22, 2020, a 5.0-magnitude earthquake had struck Pacitan District in East Java Province, but the tremors were not only felt by the local residents but also those inhabiting Yogyakarta, Bantul, Sleman, Wonogiri, Tulungagung, and Karangates.
On Feb 26, 2018, a 7.4-magnitude earthquake had rattled the Boven Digoel District’s areas in Papua Province, which wrecked several buildings, including a mosque in Mindiptana Sub-district.
In 2018, the BMKG recorded that Indonesia had borne the impact of 11,577 earthquakes, including several ones causing major casualties, with the figure notably increasing from that in 2017.
The BMKG data indicated that 11,577 earthquakes, with varying magnitudes and depths, hit in 2018, while merely 7,172 earthquakes were recorded in 2017.
This indicates that Indonesia had borne witness to a substantial increase in the number of tectonic earthquakes in 2018.
Several earthquake-related events that hit Indonesia in 2018, including the liquefaction in Palu, a tsunami that struck prior to the issuance of a tsunami warning in Palu, and the Sunda Strait Tsunami, had never occurred before.
In 2004, Indonesia had also borne the brunt of a major catastrophe that claimed hundred thousand lives in Banda Aceh and impacted several other parts of Aceh Province after the areas were rattled by a deadly tsunami following a powerful earthquake.
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