Jakarta, Aug. 18 -- Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Pratikno urged the East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) provincial government to establish a disaster response task force to accelerate relief efforts following Saturday's magnitude 7.7 earthquake.

He said a provincial task force is needed to strengthen coordination across areas affected by the 15-kilometer-deep tectonic earthquake off the northern coast of Flores Island.

"We call for the immediate formation of a regional task force, considering that evacuees are sheltering at multiple locations. Furthermore, we observe that the basic needs of evacuees must still be met," Pratikno said in a statement on Tuesday.

He explained that the task force is expected to strengthen th...