Tourists were evacuated from Gili Trawangan island near Lombok on August 6 (Source: Xinhua/VNA)Jakarta (VNA) - Around 7,000 foreigntourists had been evacuated from Gili Trawangan, Gili Air and Gili Meno islandsin Indonesia as of August 7, after a recent 7-magnitude earthquake struck thenearby tourist island of Lombok with the death toll climbing to 105.
Coordinating Political, Legal and SecurityAffairs Minister Wiranto said the Indonesian government has deployed moreships, buses and aircraft to support the evacuation of tourists from Lombok toBali.
Dozens of buses have been sent to carryholidaymakers to Lombok airport and Mataram city, he said, adding that someairlines such as Citilink Airlines and Garuda have increased flights to speedup the evacuation efforts.
The Indonesian government has also extended theairport operation to 24 hours, provided extra flights for several destinationsfrom the airport, and scrapped the fine for foreign tourists whose visa haveexceeded the period due to the earthquake.
Muhammad Rum, head of the local DisasterMitigation Office, said the economic loss of the earthquake that occurred onAugust 5 could amount to 1 trillion rupiah (nearly 72 million USD).
Up to 230 aftershocks were recorded followingthe quake. More aftershocks are forecast to occur in the next few weeks.
Nearly 240 people were seriously injured in thequake. Over 20,000 others in Lombok lost their houses.
Indonesia, an archipelago of thousands ofislands, sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a seismic activity hotspot.
It is frequently hit by earthquakes, most ofthem harmless. However, the region remains acutely alert to tremors that mighttrigger tsunamis.-VNA
VNA
