“I was trapped under the rubble of my house for about 50 minutes. My eyes, nose, mouth, and ears were covered in dust and sand. I breathed very slowly through my nose because I was afraid the dust would get too deep into my lungs. Thank God, I managed to hold on until my youngest child saw my hand sticking out from the rubble,” Yolenta said.

The memory of that morning remains vivid in her mind. On Saturday, August 15, 2026, a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck Nagekeo District, East Nusa Tenggara. When the earthquake struck at around 5 a.m., Yolenta was asleep in her bedroom at her home in Ngera Village, Keo Tengah Subdistrict.

The sudden shaking woke her up. Her husband and two children, who were sleeping in another room, managed to get out of the house first. Yolenta, however, did not have time to follow them. The floor beneath her feet began to shake as parts of the house started to collapse.

“I was asleep when the earthquake woke me up. My husband and children, who were sleeping in another room, had already managed to get out. I tried to find another way out, but I couldn’t. Parts of the house had already collapsed. I was trapped inside and eventually buried under the rubble,” she recalled.

Under the rubble, Yolenta began struggling to stay conscious. Yet she kept trying to find a way to let her family know that she was still alive. For nearly 50 minutes, she moved her right arm back and forth. It was the only part of her body still visible through the rubble. Then, she slowly heard her child calling her name.

“Little by little, I could hear my child calling my name. My child, who was being carried by my husband, immediately jumped toward my hand. Thank God, I am very grateful that I was given another chance to rise again,” she said with a smile.

For Yolenta, her family’s safety became the reason to keep moving forward. Although their house was damaged and most of their belongings could no longer be used, she did not want to remain trapped in the difficult circumstances for too long.

Rebuilding with What Remains

“I am grateful that my husband and our two children are healthy. We can try to get back on our feet and start everything again. Although we are temporarily living in a tent, we will keep trying to move forward,” she said optimistically.

Yolenta is now slowly rebuilding her life with her family. One of the ways she is doing so is by making use of the livelihoods that remain available to them, including a clove plantation and other crops.

“Now I manage the cloves and other crops together with my relatives. As for the clove trees that belong to me, they cannot be harvested yet and will need time before they can generate income,” she added.

Cloves are one of the commodities cultivated by communities in Nagekeo District. For Yolenta, the plantation is not merely a source of income but also a source of hope as she works to rebuild her life after the earthquake.

At the same time, daily life for Yolenta and her family remains far from what it was before the earthquake. Many household items were damaged, from kitchen utensils and clothing to other essential belongings.

“Many things can no longer be used. For example, the only clothes I have left are the ones I was wearing at the time. Now my family and I are temporarily staying in a tent in the yard of a relative’s house,” she said.

Amid these circumstances, simple tools and household items have become essential for carrying out daily activities. Yolenta was relieved when she received a CARE Package for Emergency (CP4E) in Ngera Village.

She said that the various items in the package helped her family meet their basic needs while living in an emergency situation. The cooking equipment was among the items she found most useful.

“Thank you. These items are very useful for us. We can cook more easily because the package includes a stove, plates, glasses, spoons, and other items. There is also a tarpaulin and rope that we can use to make a larger tent,” she said.

For Yolenta, recovering from a disaster does not mean immediately returning to the way things were before. There is a house to repair, belongings to replace, and livelihoods to rebuild gradually.

Yet, just as she kept moving her hand from beneath the rubble that morning, Yolenta has chosen to keep trying. With what remains, she and her family are rebuilding their lives, one step at a time.

Writer: Kukuh Akhfad
Editor: Swiny Adestika