Police and military move Labuan Bajo hospital patients into quake tents

Labuan Bajo — Around 80 Indonesian police and military personnel helped move dozens of inpatients from two Labuan Bajo hospitals into outdoor emergency tents following a magnitude 7.7 earthquake that struck East Nusa Tenggara on Saturday, 15 August 2026.

The joint operation involved officers from the West Manggarai Sub-regional Police, the East Nusa Tenggara Regional Police’s Pioneer Mobile Brigade Battalion B, and the Labuan Bajo Naval Base, according to an official statement from the Indonesian National Police and national media coverage.

Patients were relocated from Siloam Hospital Labuan Bajo and Komodo Regional Hospital (RSUD Komodo) into tents set up in the hospitals’ courtyards as a precaution against aftershocks and potential structural damage. Police reports and local media said the evacuation aimed to reduce risks from cracks in multistorey hospital buildings while maintaining continuity of care.

West Manggarai Police Chief Superintendent Christian Kadangy said patient safety was the main priority during the evacuation, describing the move to outdoor treatment areas as a mitigation step while the stability of the hospital structures was still being assessed. He said teams took extra care to avoid physical or psychological trauma as patients were transferred from upper-floor wards.

Emergency tents at two hospitals

Reports from police and Indonesian media said the operation deployed about 80 personnel from the police Mobile Brigade, local police units and the Labuan Bajo naval base. At Siloam Hospital, responders erected three emergency tents — two provided by police and one by the naval base — while a separate medical tent was set up in the courtyard of Komodo Regional Hospital.

The tents were equipped with folding field beds, ambulances and first-aid supplies to support continued treatment for evacuated inpatients. Photographs published by local and national outlets showed patients, including children and elderly people, receiving care under canvas shelters outside Komodo Regional Hospital several days after the quake.

Medical staff at Komodo Regional Hospital said all patients were moved out of the main building during and immediately after the earthquake in response to strong shaking and early assessments of damage. They reported that evacuees included intensive care and high-dependency patients, who continued to receive treatment in the temporary outdoor facilities.

Quake impact and wider response

The magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck Flores and surrounding areas in East Nusa Tenggara at around 04:58 local time on 15 August 2026, prompting tsunami warnings, widespread building damage and thousands of residents seeking safety outdoors. Situation briefings by engineering and disaster-response organisations noted that Komodo Regional Hospital sustained significant damage and was functioning as a referral centre while operating partly from temporary facilities.

National and international coverage described health services across Flores moving care outdoors and operating under emergency tents because of damaged hospital buildings and continuing aftershocks. In Labuan Bajo, media reports highlighted patients at Siloam Hospital and Komodo Regional Hospital being cared for in courtyard tents, with some facilities remaining outside as of 20 August.

Police units also conducted field surveys and dialogic patrols in Labuan Bajo and surrounding coastal and rural areas to monitor damage and help maintain public order after the quake. Disaster agencies and partner organisations mobilised tents, camp beds, medical supplies and other relief items across affected districts, with a main coordination post established in Labuan Bajo.

For residents and visitors to Labuan Bajo and Komodo National Park, the relocation of hospital patients to outdoor tents underscores that parts of the local health system are operating under emergency conditions, with at least some services moved out of damaged buildings while structural assessments and repairs continue.

Sources

• Detik.com regional report on TNI–Polri evacuation of Labuan Bajo patients
• CNN Indonesia national report on evacuation of Labuan Bajo hospital patients
• Indonesian National Police article on West Manggarai Police quake response
• Wikipedia entry on the 2026 Flores earthquake
• Liputan6 regional report on damage and patient evacuation at RSUD Komodo Labuan Bajo
• The Jakarta Post report on aid gaps and emergency tents at Komodo Regional Hospital
• Kumparan photo feature on patients treated in emergency tents at RSUD Komodo
• Miyamoto International situation brief on Flores–NTT Earthquake M 7.7
• Starconnect Media article on 7.7-magnitude earthquake impacts in Flores
• BBC News article on aid shortages and continued aftershocks after the Indonesia quake