Indonesia earthquake toll 73 as woman found alive

A 7.7-magnitude earthquake off Indonesia’s Flores island has killed 73 people, injured more than 900 and displaced nearly 60,000, the BNPB disaster mitigation agency said, as a paralysed 84-year-old woman was found alive days after her home collapsed.

Local official Rudolfus Riba said Paulina Pobi was found by her family on Tuesday under collapsed bamboo walls on a small island north of Flores. Her family had initially thought she had been rescued and taken to a shelter.

“Because she was paralysed, she couldn’t move or speak, so it wasn’t until the fourth day that her family finally found her,” Rudolfus said. He said Pobi had no injuries and was in good health, though weak after days without food or water.

The quake struck off Flores on Saturday. BNPB said hundreds of homes were knocked down, while the BMKG geological agency said more than 3,000 aftershocks had been recorded since then, at least 86 of them strong enough to be felt by residents.

The continuing tremors have left many residents afraid to return to damaged homes. BNPB said nearly 400 tonnes of aid, including food, water and medicines, had been delivered since Saturday.

Indonesia frequently experiences earthquakes because it lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a zone of intense seismic and volcanic activity.