The 1992 earthquake and tsunami was named for the Indonesian island of Flores.
The magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck on 12 December 1992 in the Flores region of Indonesia. It ruptured the Flores back-arc thrust, a major fault system associated with the complex convergence of the Australian and Sunda plates. The resulting tsunami arrived at some coastlines within roughly five minutes.
The waves were unusually large for an earthquake of this magnitude, and researchers have suggested that submarine landslides or rockfalls amplified the tsunami. Run-up was generally several metres, but reached about 26 metres at Riangkroko. Maumere and nearby communities suffered catastrophic damage, while Babi Island also experienced heavy losses.
Flores is one of the Lesser Sunda Islands. The event is therefore not named for Timor, Lombok or Bali, although all are part of Indonesia’s earthquake- and tsunami-prone island arc. The name identifies the island and surrounding region most closely associated with the disaster.