BMKG Asks The Community To Beware Of 9 Faults That Trigger The Earthquake In Papua

Head of Sub Division of Collection and Distribution of the Center for Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Region V Jayapura, Dedy Irjayanto (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - BMKG asks the public to be aware of the movement of nine faults or faults in Papua and West Papua which have caused earthquakes.

Head of the Sub Division for the Collection and Distribution of the Jayapura Region V Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Center, Dedy Irjayanto, said that throughout 2020 there were 1,597 earthquakes in the two provinces due to the movement of the nine faults.

"Nine faults or faults that people in Papua and West Papua must watch out for because of their very active movements, this is what triggers the prone to tectonic earthquakes," he said as quoted by Antara, Friday, January 15.

According to Dedy, these 9 faults include the Sorong Fault in Sorong and the Ransiki Fault in Ransiki in the West Papua region, while in the Papua region the Yapen Fault in the Serui and Biak regions, the Waipoga Fault Zone, Wandamen, Weyland Sungkup Fault in Nabire and its surroundings, the Zone The Mamberamo Factoring Line in the Sarmi region and its surroundings, the Cycloop appointment zone in Jayapura and its surroundings, and the Central Mountains Factoring Line in the Wamena region and its surroundings.

"People who live in the nine fault lines must improve mitigation because Papua and West Papua are earthquake-prone areas," he said.

He explained that throughout 2020 there were 1,597 tectonic earthquakes with the classification of significant earthquakes or felt reaching 58 times.

"In terms of magnitude, these 1,597 earthquakes include 1,420 earthquakes with a strength of less than four, 165 earthquakes with magnitudes of four to five and 12 earthquakes with magnitudes above five," he said.

He added that in terms of depth, the earthquake was dominated by shallow earthquakes with a depth of less than 70 kilometers totaling 1,516 times, medium depth earthquakes from 71 to 80 kilometers with 20 earthquakes and one earthquake with a depth of more than 300 kilometers.

"This earthquake is also prone to triggering a tsunami wave in just a few minutes, where the potential for a tsunami to occur if an earthquake is above magnitude seven and shallow depth, then residents must immediately find a safe place if these conditions occur, the community can immediately mitigate disasters and self-evacuation by complying with the applicable health protocols in the event of a large magnitude earthquake, "he said.