The death toll from a powerful earthquake that struck eastern Indonesia’s Flores island has risen to 53, after rescuers recovered six more bodies Sunday evening.
The magnitude 7.7 quake struck Saturday morning off the coast near Ende, triggering landslides across six regencies and displacing thousands. More than 900 homes were destroyed and nearly 450 damaged, forcing around 5,000 people into temporary shelters, with many more sleeping outdoors over aftershock fears.
Landslides blocked sections of the Trans-Flores Highway, though most have now been cleared.
Relief workers are distributing food, water and medical supplies as authorities work to restore power and communications to isolated villages.
Flores, a Catholic-majority island in Muslim-majority Indonesia, has a history of deadly quakes, including a 1992 earthquake and tsunami that killed about 2,500 people.
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