TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Maluku Province residents are urged to bear self-evacuation skills in the midst of natural disasters such as earthquake and possible tsunami. Especially after the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) assessed that the area only has less than 5-minute window before a tsunami strikes dry land.

“The golden time available to evacuate is extremely narrow, there are also areas that are predicted to be struck by a tsunami in less than 2 minutes,” said BMKG chief Dwikorita Karnawati, while inaugurating the Lapang Geofisika school in Central Maluku on Monday, March 25.

Read: Bali Needs 10 More Tsunami Warning Sirens: Agency

The only way to escape such a disastrous situation, she said, is through sufficient self-evacuation skills. Dwikorita also urged people to not wait for BMKG’s early warning alarm, which will greatly reduce precious evacuation time.

“So, if you feel an earthquake near the vicinity of the coastline, immediately flee to higher grounds. Either hills or sturdy tall buildings,” said Dwikorita.

According to the BMKG, there exists five earthquake zone areas that are spread across the Maluku Sea subduction zone, North Seram subduction zone, South Seram, Banda, and Weber Deep, and Greben Aru zone.

MOH KHORY ALFARIZI