The offshore earthquake struck off the coast of Mindanao island on Friday afternoon at a depth of 60 kilometers, according to the German Research Center for Geosciences.
A shopping mall in General Santos City, Philippines, damaged by an earthquake on November 17, 2023. Photo: AFP
Videos posted on social media showed ceilings collapsing at two major shopping malls as pillars shook and people cowered and screamed in fear. SM City General Santos and Robinsons GenSan announced temporary closures. Photos also showed the roof of a school collapsing.
Agripino Dacera, disaster office chief for General Santos City in South Cotabato province, said three people were feared dead there. Dacera said a man and his wife were killed when a concrete wall collapsed on them, while another woman was killed at a shopping mall.
Angel Dugaduga, a disaster response official in the coastal town of Glan, said at least two people were killed near the epicenter in Sarangani province, while rescuers were searching for two others missing after a landslide.
Firefighters used shovels to dig through the ground as they searched for two missing people on Saturday, rescue worker Daniel Nocos said, adding: “The village chief reported to us that a mother and her child were trapped under the rubble.”
He said an excavator had been sent to assist in the search but had yet to reach the area because of poor road conditions and a damaged bridge.
The official National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council in Manila reported a second death in Glan and another in the neighboring Malapatan municipality. In Davao Occidental province, a 78-year-old man died after being crushed by falling rocks.
Rescuers said the quake damaged 60 houses in four provinces as well as 32 roads and bridges in the area. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has directed government agencies to ensure the safety and welfare of those affected by the quake.
Hoang Anh (according to AFP, Reuters, CNA)
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