STORY: When a magnitude 7.7 quake hit Sikka, East Nusa Tenggara on Saturday (August 15), 63-year-old Abdul Mutas rushed at least seven members of his family up a hill to a plantation they own to flee a tsunami warning.

Now, with no food and only the clothes on their backs, Abdul and his family, including elderly women, are waiting for aid to reach the eastern Indonesian island, where supplies have begun to slowly trickle in.

"You can see yourself, we're camping under a tree. So we need sheets, drinking water, food," Abdul told Reuters on Sunday (August 16).

The quake, followed by some 341 aftershocks, is the Southeast Asian nation's deadliest since a 2022 quake killed hundreds in West Java.

More than 3,300 people in the Sikka region self-evacuated or were in a sports arena, said the disaster mitigation agency BNPB.

Abdul said neither he nor other families around his area have received aid.

"I just want to know if we're supposed to stay in camps like these, or if you (the government) have better plans," he added.

The East Nusa Tenggara government is considering declaring an emergency for the province, BNPB said, which would allow authorities to mobilise resources and funding.

The area of the quake was hit in 1992 by a magnitude-7.5 earthquake that caused extensive destruction, Indonesia's geophysics agency said.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

SHOWS: SIKKA, EAST NUSA TENGGARA, INDONESIA (AUGUST 16, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

1. OPEN FIELD PLANTATION / ABDUL MUTAS (BLUE, GREEN TOP) AND FAMILY CAMPING IN OPEN FIELD PLANTATION

2. TREE / ELDERLY WOMAN SLEEPING ON TARPAULIN SHEET

3. ELDERLY WOMAN SLEEPING ON SHEET

4. VARIOUS OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN UNDER MAKESHIFT TENT

5. (SOUNDBITE) (Bahasa Indonesia) 63-YEAR-OLD QUAKE SURVIVOR, ABDUL MUTAS SAYING:

"You can see yourself, we're camping under a tree. So we need more tarpaulin sheets, drinking water, food. Children's supplies, we can't have them sick."

OFF-CAMERA REPORTER ASKING: "SO YOU'RE SLEEPING ON SHEETS?"

ABDUL SAYING: "Yes, just this sheet. We do what we can."

6. WOMEN SITTING ON TARPAULIN SHEETS

7. (SOUNDBITE) (Bahasa Indonesia) 63-YEAR-OLD QUAKE SURVIVOR, ABDUL MUTAS SAYING:

"I went there (the town) to see them (the authorities), and I yelled at them. You're letting us remain here, I didn't even see you check up on us. They told us to gather our documents, family cards, told us they'd go there (government office for aid). I just want to know if we're supposed to stay in camps like these, or if you (the government) have better plans."

OFF-CAMERA REPORTER: "SO NO AID YET?"

ABDUL SAYING: "No aid yet. We evacuated ourselves."

8. WOMEN AND CHILDREN SITTING ON TARPAULIN SHEETS

9. (SOUNDBITE) (Bahasa Indonesia) 63-YEAR-OLD QUAKE SURVIVOR ABDUL MUTAS SAYING:

"No, we haven't (gone home). We just checked our house from time to time, but we came here only with clothes on our backs, and bits of food so we can still eat. "

10. VARIOUS OF ELDERLY WOMAN RESTING ON TARPAULIN SHEET

11. ELDERLY WOMAN SITTING ON TARPAULIN SHEET

12. ABDUL AND FAMILY UNDER MAKESHIFT TENT