A powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake has struck the central Philippines, leaving at least 53 confirmed dead and more than 150 injured, mostly in the city of Bogo on Cebu island. The tremor, which hit late Tuesday, caused widespread destruction and overwhelmed hospitals as survivors sought urgent care.
At the Cebu Provincial Hospital, patients were treated under makeshift tents due to fears of aftershocks. The facility, already stretched beyond capacity, had to transfer injured patients to other hospitals. “We are receiving additional numbers of reported casualties, so this thing is very fluid,” said Rafaelito Alejandro, deputy administrator of the Office of Civil Defence.
Survivors shared harrowing accounts of their escape. Richard Guion, injured alongside his wife, credited their son for rescuing them from under the rubble of their collapsed home. Meanwhile, rescuers in Bogo worked tirelessly to drill through debris at a collapsed motel where several people were feared trapped.
President Ferdinand Marcos offered condolences to families who lost loved ones and promised swift government aid to affected areas. Dramatic footage shared on social media captured the extent of the quake, including the collapse of a historic church belfry on Bantayan island and a violently shaking Cebu bridge.
In Cebu City, 100 kilometers south of Bogo, mall shoppers fled as ceilings collapsed. “It was as if the Earth stopped spinning,” said Jayford Maranga, 21, who sheltered under a table as debris fell.
The Cebu provincial government has since appealed for volunteer doctors and nurses to help treat the rising number of victims. Roads in several towns, including Tabogon, were also damaged, with cracks disrupting transport routes.
The Philippines, located on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” experiences frequent earthquakes. While preparedness has improved in recent years, this latest disaster underscores the nation’s ongoing vulnerability to seismic threats.
