5 dead, 89 hurt in Mindanao quake
DAVAO CITY — At least five people died, three of them children, while at least 89 others were injured in the 6.3-magnitude earthquake that hit several areas in Mindanao on Wednesday night.
The casualties were reported in M’lang, Cotabato, Datu Paglas, Maguindanao, and from Magsaysay town in Davao del Sur. Three of the fatalities were children.
Mark Timbal, spokesman of the Office of the Civil Defense, said three of the fatalities died in a landslide in Davao del Sur that occurred after the earthquake.
Anthony Allada, information officer of the Magsaysay local government unit, said a family living in a far-flung community in Barangay Malawanit in the municipality of Magsaysay in Davao del Sur was buried in a landslide shortly after the earthquake struck, killing the mother and her nine-month-old son.
Allada said authorities at the site were able to rescue the father, identified as Joyjoy Lakay, and his two other children, but the rescue team failed to save the mother, who was cuddling her baby when they were retrieved from the debris.
The rescued family members were immediately taken to National Hospital in Digos City for treatment.
Allada said the other fatality was two-year-old Chris Joy Chuan Roda of Barangay San Isidro, who was pinned to death when the kitchen in their house collapsed. The victim was taken to Gonzales Maranan Medical Center, Inc. in Digos City but was declared dead on arrival.
Another fatality succumbed
to cardiac arrest in M’lang town of Cotabato, according to Joriemae Balmediano, information officer of OCD 12.
Aside from the fatalities, at least 89 other people were injured as a result of the quake.
Allada said 21 residents were taken to medical facilities in Bansalan municipality, and in the cities of Digos and Davao. Many of those injured suffered from bruises and wounds on their feet, but a survivor lost his arm after a concrete wall collapsed on him, according to Allada.
Another 68 people were reported injured in General Santos City, North Cotabato, and South Cotabato.
In North Cotabato, Tulunan Mayor Reuel Limbongan said six-year-old Janave Senda from Datu Paglas town in Maguindanao was rushed to Tulunan District Hospital after she was hit by debris from a collapsed cement wall of her house. Senda was the first reported casualty after the quake on Wednesday night.
M’lang municipal mayor Russel Abonado confirmed that one of his constituents died of a heart attack.
Abonado said he received reports, through the Municipal Disaster Risk and Reduction Management Office (MDRRMO), that a number of his residents were injured as a result of the quake.
251 aftershocks
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) has recorded 251 small to moderate-sized aftershocks, 124 of these have been plotted from their original source, which is Tulunan, North Cotabato. The aftershocks have magnitudes ranging from 1.5 to 5.5.
Phivolcs science research assistant Maila Advincula said they are continuously tracing and mapping the specific fault segment that generated the strong earthquake.
Phivolcs warned the public that aftershocks, mostly with smaller magnitudes, may persist for several days to weeks.
It also appealed to the public to refrain from “sharing or believing messages from unconfirmed and unreliable sources.”
Forced evacuation
Meanwhile in Kidapawan City, Mayor Joseph Evangelista ordered the forced evacuation of residents of Barangay Ilomavis, a hinterland located at the foot of Mount Apo, when they monitored that big rocks have fallen during the landslides.
The city registered an Intensity 7 quake, the strongest, so far, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) Kidapawan head Engineer Hermes Daquipa.
Daquipa said more than a hundred aftershocks have been recorded.
Evangelista ordered patients from various hospitals to transfer to the city gym while an assessment of the integrity of the structures is being conducted.
Acting Cotabato Governor Lala
Mendoza has also ordered, through the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management, the suspension of classes in all levels in the whole province as well as work in the provincial capitol.
Evangelista also suspended work at the city Hall.
In Davao City, Mayor Sara DuterteCarpio announced the suspension of classes in all levels, both public and private, on Thursday, October 17.
The city mayor said all school owners, teachers, and other school personnel are hereby instructed to subject school structures to safety inspection with a qualified engineer.
“If they find building defects that are dangerous and need repair, they should immediately condemn the area and not allow students to use the same,” Duterte-Carpio said.
‘Shocked, traumatized’
“Most residents in the poblacion were shocked and traumatized after the earthquake… Some residents also would not want to go back yet to their homes because of fear of the aftershocks. They slept on the streets, and brought tents and folding beds,” he added.
Several houses in the poblacion were totally and partially damaged, he added. Town mayor Arthur Davin announced a suspension of work and classes both in public and private schools at all levels.
He added municipal hall workers had already been advised not go inside the municipal hall, which was partially damaged. (With reports from Antonio L. Colina IV, Ellalyn De Vera-Ruiz, and Ivy Tejano)