DAVAO CITY, Philippines – Authorities have reported at least four dead, while many buildings were seriously damaged because of the Magnitude 6.5 earthquake that hit parts of Mindanao in the morning of October 31, 2019.
In Makilala, Cotabato, a village chief was reported dead after being hit by fallen debris inside a barangay hall. The victim is identified as Barangay Batasan Chairman Cesar Bangot. Other casualties from Makilala town are identified as Rommel Galicia, 20 and Priscilla Varona, 70.
4-year-old Samuel Masamlok of Malawanit, Magsaysay Davao del Sur was also reported wounded on his forehead after he ran away and fell down during the earthquake. Another child was also injured after cases of beer fell on him during the quake in Digos City.
In Davao City, nine people were injured after a condominium collapsed. Authorities said that of the nine, one was rushed to the hospital after sustaining head laceration while others were treated on the site.
Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, in a media briefing, said the Himeji Building of the Ecoland Residence 4000 located along Ecoland Drive was condemned by building officials after the earthquake hit on Tuesday.
The tenants were also advised to abandon the building for safety.
Reports from Davao City Police Office said the Ecoland Residence 4000 along Ecoland Drive has 56 units but only an estimated 15 units were occupied when the quake happened.
As of writing, the rescue team are still conducting clearing and retrieval operations to check for possible casualties as it is still not clear how many occupants managed to get out when the earthquake happened.
After the 6.3 magnitude tremor on Oct. 16, and other one hit on Oct. 29, authorities reported a score of infrastructural damages and thousands of residents affected in various areas of Mindanao.
Kidapawan City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office reported that Eva’s Hotel collapsed because of the earthquake.
The hotel management released its statement saying that after an inspection conducted by the local government last October 22, 2019.
During the inspection, they were supposedly informed that “the building is safe to occupy except for some restricted areas”.
The management also clarified rumors that the building was condemned as they did not receive any such notification from the city government.
CDRRMO chief Psalmer Bernalte, in an interview, said the rescue team is now checking for possible people trapped in the building.
“We are still doing the operation to look for possible victims trapped. This may be injured or trapped,” said Bernalte.
The latest earthquake also caused the collapsed of the Father Tulio Favali Municipal Hospital covered court in Tulunan town. Another building in the hospital annex was also abandoned two days ago.
DPWH also shut down the Bulatukan Bridge in Makilala Cotabato due to cracks that resulted in heavy traffic in the Davao-Cotabato national road.
There were also reports of several damages to commercial buildings in Digos City.
Authorities have not yet confirm possible casualties in the said city.(davaotoday.com)
