Another 6.2-Magnitude Aftershock Hits Lombok, No Tsunami Warning Issued
Another 6.2-magnitude aftershock hit the Indonesian tourist island of Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) province on Thursday (9/8) at a depth of 16 kilometers, only four days after a 7.0 magnitude earthquake devastated the island.
According to the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), the earthquake epicenter was located 13 kilometers northeast of the provincial capital of Mataram and no tsunami warning was issued.
“Taking into account the location of the epicenter, hypocenter depth, and the source mechanism, the earthquake is a kind of shallow earthquake due to the Flores back-arc thrust,” reads the BMKG press release.
The result of the source mechanism analysis, according to the BMKG, shows that the earthquake was generated by rock deformation with the mechanism of thrust fault. Given the fact that the epicenter was relatively similar to the earthquake that occurred on Sunday, 5 August 2018, the BMKG stated that this earthquake was an aftershock from a series of earthquakes that previously occurred.
The impact of the earthquake based on the BMKG’s shakemap and community reports, the BMKG continued, showed that shocks were felt in North Lombok III SIG-BMKG (VI MMI) area, Mataram II SIG-BMKG (V MMI), Klungkung, Denpasar, and Central Lombok II GIS BMKG (III-IV MMI), Sumbawa and Karangasem II SIG-BMKG (III MMI).
“Modeling results show that the earthquake does not have the potential to generate tsunamis,” the BMKG reported.
As of 1:05 p.m. Western Indonesian Time, the BMKGs Earthquake and Tsunami Center had recorded 362 aftershocks after Sundays earthquake.
The BMKG urges the public to remain calm and not affected by misleading information. (EN/Public Relations Division of BMKG/ES)(MUR/MMB/YM/Naster).
