Powerful Philippine Quake Kills 35, Displaces Thousands
(Bloomberg) -- The Philippines was struck by its strongest earthquake in five decades, killing at least 35 people, displacing tens of thousands and damaging buildings
(Bloomberg) -- The Philippines was struck by its strongest earthquake in five decades, killing at least 35 people, displacing tens of thousands and damaging buildings on its southern island of Mindanao. The US Geological Survey estimated the temblor at 7.8 in magnitude, as did the Philippines. The quake struck at 7:37 a.m. Manila time and is the most powerful to rock the Southeast Asian nation since 1976, and the strongest globally this year, based on USGS data. At least 35 people are feared dead, according to the Associated Press. One person died of cardiac arrest, while another was hit by debris in South Cotabato province. Around 70,000 people were displaced, while over a hundred were injured. A 1-meter high tsunami wave was reported along the coasts of several southern provinces, the Philipine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said. The government has promised funds for affected areas and sent equipment to help clear debris. Agencies have also pledged to restore electricity and repair broken roads and bridges.
“The national government is moving and we will not leave Mindanao behind,” President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said in a statement earlier in the day. Marcos’ popularity in the southern island has declined amid an ongoing feud with Vice President Sara Duterte, who’s from Mindanao. The president also ordered relevant government agencies to act immediately, and suspended classes across affected areas in Mindanao until further notice. There were reports of extensive damage to infrastructure on the southern island of Mindanao. A portion of a building in the southern city of General Santos collapsed, while a mall in the area also sustained damage, according to local media reports. Power supply and communication lines were also disrupted. “Our restaurant is standing still but almost all our stocks were destroyed,” said Cathy Velez, a staffer at a seafood restaurant in General Santos near Sarangani Bay. “Thank God all the workers were safe at the staff house.” The earthquake struck on the day public schools opened for the current school year in the Philippines, prompting students to evacuate.
A hospital also had to take patients onto the streets. “We have coordinated with our municipalities in coastal communities to do emergency evacuation,” Rene Punzalan, head of Sarangani’s provincial disaster office, told DZBB radio station. “There’s no electricity and phone signal is intermittent.” He described the earthquake as strong. “Like being rocked in a cradle,” he said. The earthquake had a magnitude of 8.1 and was 10 kilometers deep, according to the GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami alert warning of risks to the Indonesia, the Philippines, Palau, Taiwan and Papua New Guinea, but later said the threat had passed. Stocks were unaffected by the earthquake, with the benchmark index declining 1% in line with a regional selloff, and the capital Manila saw no disruption. Government work in several areas including in Davao City has been suspended, according to media reports. The state civil aviation agency temporarily suspended operations at General Santos airport, affecting 17 flights.
The BriefWire