BMKG coordinator - Bandung data and information, Virga Librian, said that the government and the community, especially those living in the Greater Bandung Area, need to pay attention to the fault.
"We need structural mitigation, including building earthquake-resistant buildings, especially school buildings and hospitals, to withstand earthquake shocks," he added on Wednesday.
According to Librian, community disaster literacy must continue to be encouraged sustainably to minimize the risk from disasters such as earthquakes.
The addition and repair of evacuation routes is one of the concrete steps to anticipate the worst-case scenarios.
"The government also needs to issue regional regulations regarding regional spatial planning for better organizing when a disaster occurs," he added.
BMKG's research has found that a Lembang Fault quake could potentially have a wide impact when its strength reaches a magnitude of 6.8, Librian informed.
Based on this potential, the BMKG has issued a shock scenario map, with the intensity of quakes in the Greater Bandung area pegged in the range of V–VIII MMI (Modified Mercalli Intensity).
"Based on the scenario, almost all of West Java, Banten, and Jakarta will be affected by the Lembang Fault. Greater Bandung will be affected by MMI V–VIII, such as West Bandung, Bandung city, Subang, and Purwakarta, which will be significantly and destructively affected," he informed.
Meanwhile, a researcher with the Geological Disaster Center of the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), Edy Hidayat, said that mitigation also needs to cover children at the educational level, not only adults.
Conveying information early is expected to bring about greater awareness on the likelihood of quakes caused by the fault, he explained.
"This could provide sensitivity at basic education regarding this matter. Even if there is no special material in the lessons, it can be applied as extracurricular material, at all levels of education," Hidayat added.
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Translator: Rubby Jovan P, Resinta Sulistiyandari
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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