New Major Earthquakes Strike Lombok
While residents on the island of Lombok were still in the process of recovering from the deadly earthquakes in late July 2018, the area was again hit by a series of devastating earthquakes in August.
First, on 5 August 2018, a shallow 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck with its epicenter in North Lombok. The consequences were disastrous. A total of 565 people were confirmed killed, while more than 1,000 people were injured and nearly 420,000 people were displaced. Local officials said roughly 80 percent of all structures in North Lombok had been damaged. This earthquake was the deadliest to have hit Lombok (in recorded history) and is also among the deadliest earthquakes that have struck Indonesia in the recent past.
Indonesia is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire, an area with a high degree of tectonic activity. Therefore, Indonesia has to cope with the constant risk of volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, floods and tsunamis. Earthquakes are probably the biggest threat in terms of natural disasters in Indonesia as they come suddenly and can strike in populous areas, such as the bigger cities (unlike volcanic eruptions or tsunamis where it is easy to determine the danger zone).
Earthquakes with a magnitude of around five on the scale of Richter occur frequently in Indonesia but usually cause no, or little, damage. When the magnitude of the quake becomes more than six, then an earthquake can potentially do a lot of damage, particularly because the state of property and infrastructure is generally weak in Indonesia.
Read the full article in the August 2018 research report of Indonesia Investments
