CALAMITY IN CEBU: Death toll climbs to 73

Local

At least people have been confirmed dead following the 6.9-magnitude earthquake that struck northern Cebu, authorities reported on Thursday, October 2.

The joint operation center, which is stationed outside the Bogo Provincial Hospital, also recorded 266 injured individuals in its latest report.

Bogo City reported the highest fatalities at 33, followed by San Remigio with 22, Medellin with 11, Tabogon with 1, Sogod with 1, and five others from nearby areas.

Responders at the operation center told MyTV Cebu that the last two persons that were retrieved are bodies of a mother and her child who were staying in a pension house in Barangay Gairan in Bogo City.

Meanwhile, during the visit of President Bongbong Marcos, he said there are a total of 65,000 displaced families in the entire province due to the earthquake.

The earthquake struck at 9:59 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 30, with an epicenter 21 kilometers northeast of Bogo City at a depth of 5 kilometers.

Authorities initially measured it at magnitude 6.7 before upgrading it to 6.9.

Instrumental readings showed Intensity VI in Cebu City and Villaba, Leyte, and Intensity V in Lapu-Lapu City, Argao, Asturias, Danao, Talisay, and several towns in Leyte.

The tremor destroyed buildings, collapsed bridges, and damaged homes across northern Cebu.

In Bogo City, an apartment in Yolanda Village collapsed, McDonald’s Bogo crumbled, and the city terminal and City Hall sustained heavy damage.

Cebu Roosevelt Memorial Colleges also reported visible cracks.

In Daanbantayan, the Archdiocesan Shrine of Sta. Rosa de Lima collapsed. San Remigio reported major damage to its public market, sports complex, and multiple government buildings.

Tabogon’s municipal hall, parish church, wet market, and schools suffered severe destruction. Medellin’s San Ignacio de Loyola Parish in Kawit also sustained heavy damage.

Landslides blocked several roads while cracks split highways. San Remigio lost bridges in Lambusan and Looc.

Tuburan restricted heavy vehicles on multiple bridges after inspectors found serious damage. Bogo City discovered deep cracks near Bogo Central School.

The quake forced 27 power plants in the Visayas to trip, cutting 1,444.1 megawatts from the grid and triggering a yellow alert, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines said.

Blackouts swept across Bogo City, Carmen, Catmon, San Remigio, Tabuelan, and Tuburan. Daanbantayan restored partial service while other towns awaited full restoration.

Telecommunications failed in Sogod, Tuburan, Tabogon, and Daanbantayan, leaving residents cut off until providers slowly restored signal.

Hospitals admitted at least 63 referred patients.

Cebu Provincial Hospital–Danao received 35 patients, CPH–Balamban 7, Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center 18, and Chong Hua Hospital Mandaue several others.

Bogo Provincial Hospital declared a code white alert as staff scrambled to manage the surge of victims.

Officials suspended classes across Cebu on October 2, with some towns extending suspensions until further notice.

They also suspended work in Borbon, Asturias, Malabuyoc, Liloan, Medellin, and in provincial government offices.

Local governments listed food packs, potable water, tents, hygiene kits, flashlights, and medical supplies for wounds, fever, and hypertension as their most urgent needs.

Some sitios in Medellin and San Remigio reported they had yet to receive food and water two days after the quake.

The province of Cebu declared a state of calamity, along with Bogo City, Medellin, Tabuelan, and San Remigio, to accelerate relief and recovery.

Government agencies, the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine Coast Guard, the Red Cross, and local responders deployed rescue, medical, and clearing teams.

Gov. Pamela Baricuatro conducted an aerial survey of the quake-hit towns on October 1, joined by AFP troops who also airlifted relief goods from the Provincial Capitol to Bogo City.

The Capitol distributed rice, water, hygiene kits, and tents, while the Red Cross deployed a food truck that prepared meals for 1,000 residents in Bogo.

Donors also sent over 113,000 in-kind items including drinking water, food, medical supplies, clothing, and shelter materials, along with P115,557.10 in cash donations.

Authorities warned that aftershocks will continue and advised residents to remain alert for landslides and falling debris.(MyTVCebu)