BMKG Urges Residents To Beware Of Landslides And Post-Employment Floods In Garut

BANDUNG - An earthquake 6.5 on the Richter scale centered in Garut caused a number of damage. The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) appealed to the people of West Java, especially in the areas of Sukabumi, Tasikmalaya, Bandung, Garut, and surrounding areas to be aware of the potential for a number of disasters.

After the earthquake, residents are advised to remain calm but be alert to anticipate landslides and flash floods that may occur. In a release broadcast by the BMKG in Jakarta on Sunday, the Head of BMKG Dwikorita Karnawati said that the tremors that occurred due to the earthquake were very likely to cause the slopes to become cracked or fragile. This condition becomes dangerous if there is rain because absorbed rain is feared to push soil masses and or rocks into landslides. "We urge the public to be calm, but remain vigilant if it rains with moderate to heavy intensity. In particular, people who live on hilly slopes, hills, mountains, or mountains and river basins because of the potential for landslides and flash floods," said Head of BMKG Dwikorita, as reported by ANTARA. BMKG, he continued, also appealed to the public to avoid buildings that are cracked or damaged caused by the earthquake. He asked people whose houses were damaged, partially, or tilted due to the earthquake so as not to occupy them for a while, and chose to stay in a safer (stronger and stable) place. "Check and make sure that residential buildings are earthquake-resistant enough, or there is no damage that can endanger the stability of the building, before returning to the house," he said.

On the same occasion, the Head of the National Earthquake Center, Daryono stated, a magnitude 6.2 tectonic earthquake that rocked Garut Regency and its surroundings was the main earthquake. The results of the BMKG analysis concluded that the earthquake that occurred was an intermediate type of earthquake due to the activity of rock deformation in a subduction Indo-Australian plate under the Eurasian plate in southern West Java, or what was popularly referred to as an earthquake in a slab (intraslab earthquake). "Last night's earthquake was a direct earthquake -mainshock-, then it collapsed and the energy was completely depleted or released. There were no opening and aftershocks earthquakes. As of 23.55 WIB, BMKG monitoring results showed the presence of one aftershock earthquake activity -aftershock- with a magnitude of 3.1," said Daryono. Meanwhile, the results of the analysis of the source mechanism showed that the earthquake had a thrust fault mechanism. The epicenter of the earthquake was located at coordinates 8.39$ LS; 107.11$ BT, or precisely located at sea at a distance of 156 km southwest of West Java Regency at a depth of 70 km.