Updated Assessment of Impacts and Responses

Figure 1. An updated list of educational infrastructure affected (Satuan Pendidikan Aman Bencana, 2018)

On August 19^th, 2018, the Island of Lombok was again hit by not one, but two significantly large earthquakes, with a magnitude of 6.3 and 6.9 M respectively. The first earthquake happened at 11:10 AM Western Indonesia Time (WIB) with a magnitude of 6.3 M. The tectonic earthquake's epicenter was located 32 KM southeast of Mataram City with a depth of 10 KM. It was determined that, based on the epicenter's location, depth, and mechanism, the earthquake is an aftershock of the previous series of earthquakes that occurred on August 5th, which resulted from a thrust fault of the Flores Back Arc Thrust. People that were located in the 5 districts and cities affected (North, Central, West, and East Lombok, along with Mataram City) felt the earthquake, with the most significant presence being in North Lombok. (Triyono, 2018)

The occurrence of the second earthquake represents a slightly more significant event than the first. After closely examining the epicenter located in the eastern-most part of Lombok Island, it was determined that the earthquake resulted from a different thrust fault. While also generated by a thrust fault in the Flores Back Arc Thrust, the 6.9 M earthquake possessed a different deformation field from all the earthquakes and aftershocks that had occurred previously. What this means essentially is that the earthquake is part of a different, possibly newer series of earthquakes. The earthquake occurred at 09:56 PM WIB and was significantly felt in North and East Lombok, reaching up to VI-VII MMI, an intensity scale which would result in moderate and heavy damage to structures (Karnawati, 2018).

Updated Assessment of Impacts and Responses The sequence of earthquakes that happened on August 19^th resulted in 10 fatalities, 24 wounded, 151 damaged structures, and 6 damaged worshiping sites.  Fortunately, most people were outside their homes or at displacement camps when the earthquake happened, as they had developed a deep seated fear due to the aftershocks that had been occurring. A recorded 101 aftershocks occurred due to the 6.9 M earthquake alone, not counting the 500 or more aftershocks from the earthquake on August 5th (Nugroho, 2018b). The island is currently experiencing a massive power outage. Residents have been evacuated to large open spaces where they would be relatively safe from collapsing structures. Further information will be provided in the future as response efforts are still ongoing (Nugroho, 2018a).

On a larger scale, general relief and rebuilding efforts are moving along steadily. Authorities and officials have been afforded more time in conducting and reporting their data collection and verification. However, several issues still persist. Clean water needs for the affected population require proper management due to existing drought problems in the Island. Physical weather data on the ground require triangulation with remotely sensed data so that authorities could have a better sense of water management. The people of North Lombok are still in desperate need of proper temporary shelter due to heavy damage to its structures, followed by West and East Lombok (AHA Centre, 2018b).

The number of internally displaced persons (IDP) has steadily risen over the past 8 days. In North Lombok, the number is spread almost equally across its 5 sub-districts, with Tanjung sub-district possessing the largest amount of IDP. In West Lombok, 2 sub-districts: Gerung and Kuripan have much lower numbers of IDP compared to Gunungsari and Batulaya, where the numbers reach over 20 thousand IDP. Gerung and Kuripan combined amounts to less than 1 thousand IDP. Aside from the number of those displaced, there has not been a more recent update regarding fatalities and damaged structures.

Table 1. Number of Internally Displaced Persons (POS KOMANDO PENANGANAN DARURAT BENCANA GEMPA LOMBOK 2018, 2018) 

Stimulation funds have been disbursed by Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI) to the Disaster Management Agency (BNPB). The total assistance provided is worth IDR 59.5 billion distributed among 1191 beneficiaries. The initial stage of early recovery will be assisted by the state government, where it will rehabilitate the homes of 1000 families through the Ministry of Public Works and Housing. The reconstruction fund allocated differ based on the perceived amount of damage sustained. IDR 50 million, 25 million, and 10 million will be allocated to families whose homes are badly damaged, moderately damaged, and lightly damaged respectively (AHA Centre, 2018b).

Before the funds are disbursed, officials will assess the damages of each household and verify what category of allocation will be provided. After the verification is concluded, the funds are then disbursed via a Gubernatorial Decree which allows the families to receive and utilize the money. As of August 21st, 11,342 out of 74,352 households across the island (including all four districts along with Mataram city) have been issued with the decree. The rest are still awaiting official verification. 440 households have been verified but have not been issued with the decree (POS KOMANDO PENANGANAN DARURAT BENCANA GEMPA LOMBOK 2018, 2018).

Rehabilitation of public facilities will be carried out within the next two weeks. National government agencies are committed to fully support the efforts of the NTB provincial government in response, recovery, and rehabilitation (AHA Centre, 2018b). In addition, families will also be given welfare checks for the next three months to ensure they can provide their own basic needs. The amount allocated for one person is IDR 900 thousand (Kementerian Sosial Republik Indonesia, 2018).

Education Sector

As of August 21^st, The Ministry of Education and Culture has provided an update on the statistics of damaged education infrastructures as follows: (i) nursery and kindergarten (136 units); (ii) elementary school (460 units); (iii) junior high school (115 units); (iv) senior high school (72 units); (v) vocational school (69 units) and (vi) special education school (7 units). The most affected district for the education sector is Northern Lombok (275 units), followed by West Lombok (186 units); East Lombok (174 units); Central Lombok (134 units) and City of Mataram (70 units).

Emergency response priorities for the education sectors are: (i) distribution and establishment of emergency class tents; (ii) distribution of school kits; (iii) psychosocial support and Ayo Belajar Campaign; (iv) Emergency School support and (v) Education post management for Multi-stakeholders coordination. So far, officials have distributed 157 emergency school tents, of which 34 have been erected. 5000 school kits have already been collected, and so far, 1500 have been given to schoolchildren. The Ministry of Education and Culture will build 51 emergency schools, with assistance from the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN), and Ministry of Public Works and Settlements (PU-PR).

However, despite the collective effort and investment, the Ministry of Education and Culture has stated that they currently lack 599 emergency school tents and school kits. To resolve this, the ministry relies on support from NGOs and independent donations. For more information, refer to Figure 1. (Satuan Pendidikan Aman Bencana, 2018)

National Disaster

The National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) has released a statement concerning the carousel of news that have surfaced recently, which claimed that the disaster in Lombok should be declared a national emergency. The BNPB stated clearly that the disaster in Lombok is not a national emergency, and that the authority to do so, based on Government Regulation no. 21, 2008, lies only at the President. The Governor and Mayor/Regent have the authority to declare a Provincial and City/District emergency respectively. The earthquake in Lombok has been declared as a Provincial emergency by the Governor (AHA Centre, 2018a).

If a national emergency is declared, the country will be able to receive international aid from other countries and international entities, in accordance with the Geneva Convention. The BNPB does not deem necessary to declare the events in Lombok as a national emergency. They specified that the state government are entirely capable in carrying out their obligation in Lombok. International aid isn't always favorable, as in this case it could bring with them additional political, social, and security issues. In addition, they could also interfere with coordination between governmental agencies, ministries, and other parties in conducting humanitarian relief and rehabilitation efforts. The BNPB stressed the need to avoid such distractions whenever it rears its head in media outlets, and let them continue with their work (Nugroho, 2018c)

References 

AHA Centre. (2018a). SITUATION UPDATE No. 6. M 6.4 Lombok Earthquake (29 Jul 2018) & M 7.0 Lombok Earthquake (5 Aug 2018), INDONESIA, (6), 1-8

AHA Centre. (2018b). SITUATION UPDATE No. 7. M 6.4 Lombok Earthquake (29 Jul 2018) & M 7.0 Lombok Earthquake (5 Aug 2018), INDONESIA.

Karnawati, D. (2018). Pulau Lombok Kembali Diguncang Gempabumi M=7.0, Tidak Berpotensi Tsunami. Retrieved August 21, 2018, from https://www.bmkg.go.id/press-release/?p=pulau-lombok-kembali-diguncang-gempabumi-m7-0-tidak-berpotensi-tsunami&tag=press-release&lang=ID

Kementerian Sosial Republik Indonesia. (2018). Penanganan Korban Bencana Gempa Bumi Provinsi Nusa Tenggara Barat Tahun 2018.

Nugroho, S. P. (2018a). Gempa 7 SR Kembali Guncang Lombok. Retrieved from https://bnpb.go.id/gempa-7-sr-kembali-guncang-lombok

Nugroho, S. P. (2018b). Penanganan Dampak Gempa 6,9 SR Diintensifkan. 10 Orang Meninggal Dunia. Retrieved from https://bnpb.go.id/penanganan-dampak-gempa-69-sr-diintensifkan-10-orang-meninggal-dunia

Nugroho, S. P. (2018c). Potensi Nasional Masih Mampu Mengatasi Bencana Lombok, Tanpa Harus Menyatakan Bencana Nasional. Retrieved from https://bnpb.go.id/potensi-nasional-masih-mampu-mengatasi-bencana-lombok-tanpa-harus-menyatakan-bencanamenyatakan-bencana-nasional

POS KOMANDO PENANGANAN DARURAT BENCANA GEMPA LOMBOK 2018. (2018). Paparan Komandan Tanggap Darurat Bencana Gempa Bumi di Pulau Lombok Provinsi NTB. Satuan Pendidikan Aman Bencana. (2018). Sekolah Terdampak Gempa Lombok. Retrieved from spab.kemdikbud..go.id

Triyono, R. (2018). Gempa Susulan M=6.5 Kembali Guncang Pulau Lombok, Tidak Berpotensi Tsunami. Retrieved August 21, 2018, from https://www.bmkg.go.id/press-release/?p=gempa-susulan-m6-5-kembali-guncang-pulau-lombok-tidak-berpotensi-tsunami&tag=press-release&lang=ID