EU Ready to Help RI Deploy Satellite System to Monitor Earthquakes in NTT

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen. (Wikimedia Commons - European Union)

JAKARTA - The European Union (EU) is ready to assist the Republic of Indonesia in the search and rescue operation for earthquake victims in Indonesia through the deployment of the Copernicus satellite system, said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

"From solidarity to action, Europe is always ready to deploy Copernicus, our eyes in the sky, to support search and rescue efforts. Indonesia, we stand with you," Von der Leyen said via social media X, Saturday.

A magnitude 7.7 earthquake hit the eastern coast of Indonesia on Friday night (14/8).

According to the rescue service, at least 20 people were killed by the earthquake. Meanwhile, dozens of others were injured and rescue operations are still ongoing to evacuate victims buried in the rubble.

A small tsunami with a height of less than 1 meter was recorded after the earthquake. Local authorities also issued a tsunami warning, although it was later canceled.

Landslides, infrastructure damage, and communication disruptions due to the earthquake were reported to make the process of rescuing victims more complicated.

Meanwhile, Copernicus is the European Union's Earth observation system. In emergency situations, satellite data can be used for rapid mapping of affected points and supporting rescue operations.