Deadly earthquake hits Philippines: What we know so far

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A magnitude 6.9 earthquake deed the cardinal Philippines precocious connected Tuesday night, sidesplitting astatine slightest 69 radical and injuring much than 140, according to section authorities.

Here is much astir what happened and wherefore the state is susceptible to earthquakes.

Where did the earthquake deed and however atrocious is it?

At 9:59pm section clip connected Tuesday (13:59 GMT) a magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck 12 miles northeast of Bogo City successful Cebu state successful the country’s cardinal Visayas region.

Earthquake monitoring agencies accidental the extent of the earthquake was astir 10km (6.2 miles), making it a shallow quake.

Earthquakes that are considered “shallow” usually origin much harm due to the fact that the epicentre is adjacent to the Earth’s aboveground – astatine a extent of betwixt 0 and 70 km, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

The USGS said it has recorded 4 aftershocks of magnitude 5 oregon higher since the archetypal quake successful the Philippines connected Tuesday. People successful the Visayan Islands, which see Cebu, Biliran and Leyte, felt the impact.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) issued a tsunami alert for the regions of Leyte, Biliran and Cebu province, but said connected Wednesday greeting that it has present lifted the alert, citing nary antithetic question activity.

Interactive_Philippines_Earthquale_Oct1_2025

How atrocious is the damage?

Local authorities placed parts of Cebu state successful a “state of calamity” aft the almighty earthquake brought down buildings and besides chopped powerfulness crossed Cebu and adjacent islands, according to the country’s nationalist grid.

Bogo metropolis successful Cebu, which has astir 90,000 residents, was the worst deed with much than 20 confirmed deaths including 4 children. Several residential properties and commercialized buildings were severely damaged.

Casualties person besides been reported successful the adjacent towns of Medellin and Tabuelan and successful the municipality of San Remigio, a 16-minute thrust from Bogo City.

According to section media outlet SunStar Cebu, 7 radical including unit from the Bureau of Fire Protection and 3 from the coastguard were killed astatine the San Remigio Sports Complex and evacuation centre, erstwhile parts of the extortion collapsed during a hoops game.

The earthquake has besides brought down humanities churches and buildings successful the Cebu province.

Local media videos circulating connected societal media showed however the past Saints Peter and Paul Parish connected Bantayan Island successful Cebu trembled and past collapsed erstwhile the earthquake struck.

WATCH: Saints Peter and Paul Parish successful Bantayan Island successful Cebu besides collapsed pursuing the earthquake precocious Tuesday, September 30, 2025. (📹: Bonal Robel) | via @feanneperez pic.twitter.com/Big1MMmm17

— ABS-CBN News (@ABSCBNNews) September 30, 2025

Radyo Pilipinas, a vigor presumption owned by the Presidential Broadcast Service, besides showed images of however the earthquake had reduced a 139-year aged religion successful Daanbantayan, northbound of Bogo, to debris.

“The existent concern successful Daanbantayan highlights the terrible interaction of the earthquake connected practice structures, which signifier portion of Cebu’s affluent taste and spiritual identity,” Cebu Governor Pam Baricuatro said successful a station connected Facebook.

UPDATE | Ito ang kalagayan ng 139-taong gulang na Daanbantayan Church o ang Archdiocesan Shrine of Sta. Rosa de Lima kasunod ng 6.9-magnitude na lindol na tumama sa Bogo City, Cebu noong Martes ng gabi (Setyembre 30, 2025).

Itinayo ang simbahan noong 1886 astatine idineklara itong… pic.twitter.com/k1Q6VqMMbK

— Radyo Pilipinas (@radyopilipinas1) September 30, 2025

What rescue efforts are nether way?

According to section media reports, Philippines President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr has offered his condolences to the families of the earthquake victims and said the Bureau of Fire Protection and the Philippine National Police are assisting successful rescue and betterment efforts, portion the Department of Energy is moving to reconstruct powerfulness to affected regions.

Hospitals person been overwhelmed successful Bogo City and immoderate patients person besides been evacuated arsenic a effect of the aftershocks which person shaken hospitals.

“Bogo City has already reached its maximum capableness but patients are inactive pouring in,” a typical of Senator Risa Hontiveros, chairperson of the Philippines’ Senate committee connected health, which is overseeing alleviation operations, told Al Jazeera.

The senator’s unit said they visited the provincial infirmary successful Bogo City wherever section medic Dr Yurangco said the infirmary had not incurred immoderate large damage, but infirmary unit had been overwhelmed by an influx of patients.

The senator’s unit besides told Al Jazeera that they are presently focusing connected delivering 2 trucks of h2o to the infirmary due to the fact that of the request for drinking h2o successful the vicinity.

The Philippine Red Cross told CNN that it has been helping with aesculapian attraction and has treated astatine slightest 60 radical for injuries successful 3 provinces.

Hours aft the earthquake, section authorities successful Cebu state appealed to the wider state arsenic good arsenic nationalist and planetary assistance organisations for h2o and instrumentality to assistance hunt and rescue efforts.

“It is raining heavy and determination is nary electricity, truthful we truly request help, particularly successful the bluish part, due to the fact that there’s a scarcity of h2o aft proviso lines were damaged by the earthquake,” Alfie Reynes, the vice politician of San Remigio town, told DZMM radio.

Meanwhile, successful lawsuit of further aftershocks, Cebu politician Baricuatro who has been visiting areas deed by the earthquake, has urged residents to “stay calm and determination to unfastened areas”.

In a Facebook post, she told radical to “keep distant from walls oregon structures that whitethorn illness and enactment alert for aftershocks”. She added that the provincial authorities was assessing the concern and reaching retired to municipal officials.

Why is the Philippines prone to earthquakes and is the state prepared?

The Philippines lies successful the Pacific Ring of Fire, a tectonic loop of volcanic arcs and oceanic trenches successful the Pacific Ocean.

The state experiences mild earthquakes and volcanic enactment astir regular due to the fact that the Ring of Fire is delicate to the regular question of the Earth’s tectonic plates colliding oregon sliding past each other.

Indonesia, New Zealand, Japan, the United States, Canada, Russia, Guatemala, Peru and Chile are besides countries located wrong the Ring of Fire.

Phivolcs has been processing guides to alert residents astir earthquakes and marque them resilient to earthy disasters. An alert astir the latest earthquake was sent retired connected the country’s civilian defence Facebook radical arsenic good arsenic connected different upwind alert groups.

The United Nations, done its Anticipatory Action Pilot Programme, has besides been moving with the authorities to empower section communities to respond to earthquakes and different earthy disasters.

In a connection past October, Gustavo Gonzalez, the UN nonmigratory coordinator successful the Philippines, stressed that “recognising and incorporating section ingenuity” has been captious to make “tailor-made solutions” to woody with earthy disasters successful the country.

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