Magnitude 7.7 earthquake off Flores: the tsunami alert crosses the Pacific, and the death toll ranges from 1 to 20

Argentina

2 SOURCES

The transpacific alert chain · 4 of 14 countries

Buenos Aires is faced with two conflicting human tolls from the Indonesian earthquake, with no tsunami alert issued for its own Atlantic coast.

Australia

3 SOURCES

Regional neighbors · 4 of 14 countries

Canberra is grappling with a conflicting human toll report from its immediate Indonesian neighbor, while ruling out any tsunami risk for its own coastlines.

Bangladesh

2 SOURCES

Remote verification · 5 of 14 countries

Dhaka reports two conflicting human tolls from the Flores earthquake, with 20 deaths according to a relief official cited by AFP and five deaths according to the provincial governor, without verifying the sources.

Canada

2 SOURCES

Remote verification · 5 of 14 countries

Canada reports a varying human toll, with the provincial governor citing five deaths and Indonesia's national agency confirming only one.

China

incl. 1 state outlet

2 SOURCES

Regional neighbors · 4 of 14 countries

Beijing is sticking to the official human toll released by its state-run media outlet CGTN, rather than the higher figure reported by Hong Kong's South China Morning Post.

South Korea

2 SOURCES

Regional neighbors · 4 of 14 countries

Seoul is reporting two conflicting human tolls — five deaths according to the AP, twenty according to the AFP — without reconciling them, indicating coverage reliant on wire reports rather than its own reporting.

Ecuador

2 SOURCES

The transpacific alert chain · 4 of 14 countries

Quito has initiated an analysis by INOCAR of its own coast, treating the Indonesian earthquake as a test of its transpacific alert chain rather than a direct threat.

United States

2 SOURCES

Remote verification · 5 of 14 countries

The United States anchors the global narrative with scientific measurements: the USGS provides magnitude, epicenter, and depth, relayed as far as South America.

Indonesia

incl. 1 state outlet

3 SOURCES

The affected country · 1 of 14 countries

Indonesia assesses the human toll in Maumere — two named fatalities, a collapsed port — as the Indonesian press also notes how foreign media are reporting on its own earthquake.

Malaysia

3 SOURCES

Regional neighbors · 4 of 14 countries

Kuala Lumpur is updating its casualty toll by the hour, with the death count jumping from two to twenty, according to AFP reports relayed by Malaysian media.

Mexico

2 SOURCES

The transpacific alert chain · 4 of 14 countries

Mexico City draws a parallel between the Indonesian earthquake with a magnitude of 7.7 and its own seismic history, without issuing a warning for its Pacific coast.

Pakistan

3 SOURCES

Remote verification · 5 of 14 countries

Islamabad is reporting two to three competing human tolls from the Flores earthquake, with the Pakistani press reconstructing the event through AFP and Reuters dispatches rather than direct coverage.

Peru

5 SOURCES

The transpacific alert chain · 4 of 14 countries

Lima activated its entire tsunami alert chain in response to an earthquake that occurred thousands of kilometers away, before ruling it out within a few hours.

United Kingdom

2 SOURCES

Remote verification · 5 of 14 countries

London is closely examining the discrepancy between the provincial and national death tolls from the Indonesian earthquake, opting to verify through imagery rather than rush to a specific number.