Denpasar (Antara Bali) - Following an earthquake that was felt in Bali at 10:55 local time today, and which was followed by an aftershock in the afternoon, Bali Hotels Association (BHA) would like to issue the following information.
While there are currently no reports of significant injury or major infrastructure damage, BHA is actively monitoring the situation. The association responded quickly by sending out two information emails to its member GMs immediately after the earthquake, which was initially rated at 6.8 on the Richter scale, but later downgraded to 6.
The BHA email informed members about the strength of the earthquake, its depth and location as well as that no official tsunami warning was issued, Jean-Charles Le Coz, Chairman of Bali Hotels Association, said here, Friday.
BHA instructed its members to tune into all available information sources and to listen to official beach sirens where available. The association also instructed hotels to evacuate immediately should a beach siren be triggered.
The mail was accompanied by a list of reliable early-warning sources for its members to tune into.
The information exchange among BHA members as well as its associates and information-providers ran smoothly.
The association’s internal tsunami early-warning system at the Hard Rock Hotel functioned as intended. The system is linked to Badan Metorologi dan Geofisika (BMKG) in Jakarta and sends out customized evacuation recommendations to its subscribers if a tsunami threat is detected—which wasn’t the case today.
While little panic, serious injury or major damage was reported, BHA received several inquiries from its members as well as government agencies and foreign associates which were all answered in a timely manner.
BHA continues to closely monitor the situation and will proactively inform its members and associates about new developments in order to ensure the safety of its guests and employees
Security and safety take center stage with BHA. The association is continually training its members for the event of a tsunami as well as earthquakes. BHA member hotel have access to a wide range of resources and expert advice, and the association’s tsunami preparedness initiatives have won worldwide recognition, also from the United Nations.(**)
