JAKARTA, Aug. 7 (CGTN) -- Over 2,000 tourists have been evacuated after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Indonesia’s resort island of Lombok, killing 98 people.
In addition, 236 people were injured, according to national disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho.
The agency said it expected the death toll to rise once the rubble of more than 13,000 flattened and damaged houses are cleared away.
President Joko Widodo has ordered officials and military and police chiefs to accelerate the disaster relief effort.
The international airport on Lombok has increased flight schedules and extended operations to accommodate foreign tourists trying to leave after the quake.
The search and rescue teams rescued 2,000 to 2,700 tourists from the Gili Islands, three islands a few kilometers off the northwest coast of Lombok.
All 37 Chinese tourists stranded on the Gili Islands have been evacuated.
The powerful quake struck on Sunday with the epicenter 18 km northwest of Lombok Timur district and 15 km under-earth. The temblor was also felt strongly in nearby Bali Island and East Java Province, according to the meteorology and geophysics agency.
A total of 170 aftershocks were recorded on Monday on Lombok after Sunday's earthquake, said authorities.
Sunday's quake came just days after a 6.4-magnitude earthquake hit Lombok on July 29, that left 17 people dead, 365 others injured, 8,871 people displaced and 14,940 houses and building damaged, said the disaster agency.