July 2018 Lombok earthquake

This article is about the earthquake in late July 2018. For the stronger earthquake in August 2018,
see August 2018 Lombok earthquake.

July 2018 Lombok earthquake

Indonesian President Joko Widodo inspects Lombok earthquake

damage.

UTC time 2018-07-28 22:47:37

ISC event 612373139

USGS-ANSS ComCat

Local date 29 July 2018

Local time 06:47:37 WITA

 Duration 10–20 seconds

Magnitude 6.4 Mw

Depth 6.4 km (4.0 mi)

8.274°S 116.491°ECoordinates: 8.274°S

Epicenter
116.491°E

Fault Flores Back Arc Thrust Fault[1]

Type Reverse fault

Areas affected West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia

Max. intensity VIII (Severe)

Landslides Yes

Aftershocks 524[2]

Casualties 20 dead

401 injured

10,062 displaced[3]

The July 2018 Lombok earthquake occurred on the morning of 29 July 2018. The Mw 6.4
earthquake struck the island of Lombok, Indonesia, at a shallow depth of 6.4 km
(4.0 mi).[4] The epicentre was located in Sembalun Subdistrict, East Lombok Regency. Widespread
damage was reported in the area. Authorities confirmed that 20 people were killed in the earthquake
while hundreds of people were injured.[5][6]
The earthquake was a foreshock for the more powerful, Mw 6.9 earthquake which struck the island a
week later.[7]

Contents

 1Tectonic setting
 2Earthquake
 3Casualties
 4Aftermath
o 4.1Search and rescue
 5References
 6External links

Tectonic setting[edit]
Lombok lies on the destructive plate boundary between the Australian Plate and the Sunda Plate. To
the east of Bali the plate boundary starts to involve a collision between the leading edge of the
Australian continent and the eastern part of the Sunda Arc and the western end of the Banda
Arc.[8] In response to this collision, the arc itself has begun to be pushed over the back-arc Bali Basin
along a major thrust fault, the 500 km (310 mi) long Flores Thrust. The Lombok earthquake has
been attributed to movement along the Flores Thrust.[1]

Earthquake[edit]
The earthquake struck on Sunday, at 06:47 local time, at a shallow depth of 6.4 km (4.0 mi).
Residents reported severe shaking near the epicentre, with multiple structures reportedly collapsed.
Dozens of houses were destroyed and widespread damages were reported. The shaking lasted for
around 10–20 seconds.[9]Local residents have said it was the strongest quake to have ever hit
Lombok. The earthquake was felt as far away as Denpasar, Bali.[10][11] and in Karangasem Regency,
Bali, a temple collapsed and a local court was damaged.[12]
Landslides struck the north portion of Mount Rinjani, where routes popular with hiking tourists are
located.[13] Authorities confirmed that 826 hikers were trapped on the mountain and waited to be
rescued.[14]
In Selong, the capital of East Lombok Regency, dozens of patients were evacuated from dr.
Soedjono regional hospital while in Sembalun a Community Health Centre was significantly
damaged.[15]
Authorities confirmed that 276 moderate aftershocks from 5.0–5.5 Mw were recorded by
the Indonesian Agency for Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics(BMKG). The largest
aftershock at a magnitude 5.7 Mw recorded at 10:16 local time.[16] On 3 August, officials confirmed
that more than 500 aftershocks had been recorded.[2]

Casualties[edit]
Authorities confirmed that a Malaysian tourist was killed by a falling wall.[17] The Indonesian National
Board for Disaster Management (BNPB) confirmed that 10 people were killed and 40 people were
injured.[18] The government confirmed that 18 Malaysians were affected by the earthquake.[19]
On the evening of 29 July, officials announced that the number of people who had been killed by the
earthquake had risen to 16.[20] Later the number rose to 17, then 20 on August 5.[21]

Aftermath[edit]
Shakemap for the 2018 Lombok earthquake.

In the aftermath of the earthquake, blackouts occurred throughout Lombok and telecommunications
went down. The National Electricity Company (PLN) stated that they would temporarily cut the
electricity in East Lombok Regency for examination.[22] They later announced that normal operation
would resume within hours.[23]
The government immediately closed the Mount Rinjani National Park. Hiking and other activities
were banned in the area due to fear of landslides.[24] Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who had
planned to visit West Nusa Tenggara prior to the earthquake,[25] ordered Muhammad Zainul Majdi,
the Governor of West Nusa Tenggara to immediately deploy search and rescue personnel to the
affected areas.[26]
Authorities stated on 29 July 2018, that East Lombok Regency had suffered the most damage.
Sembalun District and Sambelia District were regarded as the worst affected areas in the regency.
Hundreds of tents were set up while dozens of search and rescue personnel, including members
from the Indonesian Armed Forces, police and other government institutions, were deployed onto
the declared disaster zone.[27] On 29 July 2018, Bali Red Cross announced that they would send
medical experts and volunteers to Lombok.[28] Indonesian Social Minister Idrus Marham confirmed
that the government would send multiple aids to the victims.[29]
On 30 July, Joko Widodo, the Indonesian President, Muhammad Zainul Majdi the Governor of West
Nusa Tenggara, and Idrus Marham, the Social Minister visited survivors and[30] victims of the
earthquake and sent condolences to the affected families.[31][32] Majidi declared a state emergency for
3 days.[33] They distributed books and other supplies to the survivors and later examined the damage
in the area. Joko Widodo later announced that the government would help the victims to rebuild their
houses and infrastructures in Lombok. On 31 July he stated that the government would immediately
provide compensation of at least 50 million rupiah for each damaged or destroyed building.[34] The
renovation of the damaged buildings would be assisted by the Indonesian National Armed Forces.[35]
Spokesman of the BNPB, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, stated that more than 1,000 structures across
Lombok were either damaged or destroyed.[36] BMKG advised people not to enter their homes as
more aftershocks are expected in the following days.[37]
The Malaysian government through their Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad have announced that
aid would be sent to the Indonesian people who were affected by the earthquake,[38] with Mercy
Malaysia also began to distribute essential relief items for the victims.[39] The Malaysian Global Peace
Mission (GPM) have sending a team to identify the urgent needs by the victims, with an initial
RM10,000 aid and additional RM50,000 aid will be brought the following week by their second aid
team.[40]
On August 5, 2018 a Mw 6.9 or 7.0 earthquake struck Lombok, prompting tsunami warnings.[41][42]
Search and rescue[edit]

A SAR team at Mount Rinjani

The Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency (SAR) announced that there were two main
locations where trapped hikers were located. The first one was in Segara Anak Lake while the
second one was at the basecamp.[43] As of 30 July more than 700 hikers were on the mountain, of
whom 100 were from Thailand, the United States, and other countries. SAR stated that they had
prepared two helicopters for the evacuation process and that at least 500 hikers had been
evacuated from the mountain.[44]
There were confusions among officials on the number of hikers on the mountain, as it was reported
that most hikers were not registered by their tour guides. Several media stated that around 600
hikers were on the mountain, while another stated that there were around 500 people. Officials later
finalized the total number to more than 1,200 hikers of whom around 700 of them were
foreigners[45] from 26 countries, the majority are Thais.[46] Government officials stated that around 300
Thais were on the mountain during the disaster.[47]
On 1 August, all 1,226 hikers had been rescued from the mountain.[48]