List of natural disasters in Indonesia


Natural disasters in Indonesia can usefully be divided into major disasters, medium level disasters, and lesser disasters which although causing less damage are very common across Indonesia. These can conveniently be considered as macro, mezzo, and micro events. Policies to respond to natural disasters in Indonesia, which are still in an early stage of being developed, need to develop strategies to deal with each of these different types of disasters.
The official website of the provides frequent updates on disasters occurring in Indonesia.

Macro: Major natural disasters with widespread loss of life

The following is a list of main natural disasters that have occurred in Indonesia during recent history which have led to major loss of life.
YearMonthEventPlaceMain areaDeath toll
1257Huge eruption of RinjaniLombokWest Nusa TenggaraHuge eruption
1586Mount KeludBlitarEast Java10,000 est
1815AprHuge eruption of TamboraSumbawaEast Nusa Tenggara11,000 est
1815NovEarthquake and tsunamiSingaraja and SurabayaBali and East Java>11,400
1822OctGalunggungWest JavaWest Java4,010
1833NovSumatra earthquake and tsunamiWest SumatraWest Sumatra and Bengkulunumerous
1861FebSumatra earthquakeNorth SumatraNias area2,000 est
1883AugEruption of KrakatoaSunda StraitWest Java and Lampung36,417
1892JunMount Awu eruptionNorth SulawesiNorth Sulawesi1,530 est
1899SepSeram earthquake and tsunamiSeram IslandMaluku province3,864
1917JanBali earthquakeBaliBali and Lombok1,500
1919MayKelud eruptionBlitarEast Java>5,000
1926JunePapua earthquakePapuaPapua and Papua New Guinea>5,000
1930NovMerapi eruptionYogyakartaYogyakarta and Central Java>1,300
1963MarAgung eruptionBaliBali2,000 est
1976JunePapua earthquakePapuaPapua5,000
1976JulyBali earthquakeBulelengBali573
1992DecFlores earthquakeFloresEast Nusa Tenggara2,500
2004DecAceh & Nias tsunamiAceh and NiasAceh and North Sumatra170,000
2005MarNias earthquakeNiasNorth Sumatra1,300
2006MayYogyakarta earthquakeBantulYogyakarta5,782
2006JulyPangandaran earthquakePangandaranWest Java and Central Java660 est
2009SepPadang earthquakePadangWest Sumatra1,115
2018AugLombok earthquakeNorth LombokLombok564
2018SepPalu earthquake and tsunamiPaluCentral Sulawesi4,340

Total death toll unknown. The eruption is believed to have had a worldwide impact.
This is the estimated death toll from the direct impact of the eruption. A total of perhaps 70,000 people are estimated to have died from starvation and disease in the area in the months following the eruption. See also 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora.
"Some thousands" are reported to have died.
Source: MCEER, University of Buffalo, The State University of New York, , accessed 29 December 2013.
This is the estimated death toll in Indonesia. An estimated 60,000 more people died in other countries surrounding the Indian Ocean, especially in Sri Lanka.
The original official death toll was around 2,200. However several thousands more, perhaps 4,000 or more, were buried in a major mudslide during the earthquake. It has therefore been difficult to compile a reliable estimate of the final toll. As of February 2019, it was estimated that over 4,300 died.

Mezzo: Medium level natural disasters

In addition to the disasters listed in the table above, there are a large number of natural disasters in Indonesia which cause medium levels of loss of life or which give rise to large numbers of internally displaced refugees, sometimes for some months or more. Some recent examples of these include the following.
YearMonthEventPlaceMain areaDeath tollEvacuees
1965JanSanana earthquakeSanana IslandMaluku Islands71n.a.
1966AprKelud eruptionBlitarEast Java>210n.a.
1968AugSulawesi earthquakeNorth Luwu RegencySulawesi>200n.a.
1979FebDieng Plateau eruptionDieng PlateauCentral Java149n.a.
1981JanIrian Jaya earthquakePuncak Jaya areaPapua >300n.a.
1982AprEruption of Mt GalunggungGarutWest Java7262,000
1990FebWidespread floodsSemarang and regionsCentral Java169approx 20,000
1994FebLampung earthquakeLampungSumatraapprox 200> 2,000 injuries
1997SepIndonesian forest firesKalimantanSumatra & Borneo240?
2000JuneEnggano earthquakeBengkuluSumatra>100> 10,000 houses seriously damaged
2006JanSijeruk landslideBanjarnegara RegencyCentral Java240?
2006MaySidoarjo mud flowSidoarjo RegencyEast Javan.a.approx 40,000
2007OctKelud eruptionBlitarEast Javan.a.30,000
2009SepWest Java earthquakeCianjur and TasikmalayaWest Javaapprox 80approx 210,000
2010NovMerapi eruptionSouth of Mt MerapiYogyakarta & Central Java353350,000
2010AugSinabung eruptionKaro RegencyNorth Sumatra130,000
2010OctWasior floodsWasiorWest Papua1457,900
2010OctMentawai earthquake and tsunamiMentawai IslandsWest Sumatra44020,000
2014FebSinabung eruptionKaro RegencyNorth Sumatra16over 30,000
2014DecKarangkobar landslideBanjarnegara RegencyCentral Javaapprox 100?
2016DecPidie Jaya earthquakePidie Jaya RegencyAcehapprox 100over 45,000 displaced
2018Dec2018 Sunda Strait tsunamiSunda StraitBanten and Lampung437over 46,000
2019Jan2019 South Sulawesi floodsSouth SulawesiGowa Regency and Makassar68?
2019Mar2019 Jayapura flood and landslideJayapuraPapua 11311,000

Note. Estimates of the numbers of evacuees can vary considerably in short periods of time. In some cases large numbers of people move away from a threatened area but return to their homes as soon as possible. It is often the case in Indonesia that people are reluctant to move away from their homes, or stay away long, because of worries about loss of property through theft and because of the need to look after local farms and cattle. Figures listed here are generally the peak numbers although sometimes different sources provide different estimates.

Micro: Lesser natural disasters

There is a large number of smaller natural disasters in Indonesia each year which often lead to deaths of 10 or 20 people or more. For example, landslides are very common in upland areas, especially during the rainy season, and cause much local damage and deaths.
Flooding is also a regular problem across many parts of Indonesia. The capital city Jakarta is subject to severe floods from time to time which usually cause some loss of life and significant damage to public and commercial infrastructure. In January 2014, for example, over 20 people lost their lives during widespread flooding and at one stage over 60,000 citizens were temporarily housed in nearly 250 evaluation shelters across the city.
In many rural areas, local flooding is very common and brings loss of life as well as much local inconvenience to economic and community life. Recent examples of these sorts of problems at the regional level include:
2014
According to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency, as many as 566 people were killed by natural disasters and displaced over 2.6 million in Indonesia in 2014. Almost all of the disasters were classified as hydro-meteorological events. Tornadoes were the most common natural disaster followed by floods and landslides. Landslides caused the most deaths estimated at around 343 people.