A powerful earthquake shook the central Philippines late Tuesday night, leaving widespread devastation across Cebu province and nearby towns.
At least 60 people were confirmed dead by Wednesday morning, while emergency crews raced to find survivors beneath collapsed buildings and landslides.
The 6.9-magnitude quake, described as shallow and therefore more destructive, struck just west of Palompon around 10 p.m. local time.
The city of Bogo, home to nearly 90,000 residents, bore the brunt of the disaster. Streets were covered with rubble, hospitals were overwhelmed, and rescue teams struggled to reach the injured.
Civil Defense officials reported more than 150 injuries, while volunteers, police, and military personnel joined in door-to-door searches with sniffer dogs.
In the nearby town of San Remigio, tragedy struck when a sports complex collapsed during a basketball game, killing at least 13 people—including three Philippine Coast Guard members and a firefighter.
Heritage sites were not spared. The St. Rita Church in Daanbantayan lost its façade, and cracks appeared across the Municipal Hall.
Cebu Governor Pam Baricuatro noted that the destruction extended beyond infrastructure, striking at the heart of the province’s cultural and spiritual identity.
The Philippine Red Cross reported collapsed buildings, damaged schools, and widespread power outages across Cebu.
Videos on social media showed fire breaking out at a shopping mall, a McDonald’s in ruins, and beauty pageant contestants scrambling offstage as the tremors hit.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) recorded multiple aftershocks overnight.
Though it initially issued a tsunami warning for nearby provinces, the alert was lifted by early Wednesday.
In an unrelated but alarming development, Phivolcs also confirmed a minor eruption from Taal volcano, producing a massive ash plume that drifted northwest.
Governor Baricuatro urged residents to remain calm, reassuring them that aid was on the way from the presidential office.
Local governments across Cebu, including Medellin, suspended classes and work until engineers can assess buildings for safety.
The Philippines sits squarely on the Pacific Ring of Fire, one of the world’s most seismically active regions.
More than half a million people across the Visayan Islands—including Cebu, Leyte, and Biliran—reported strong shaking, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Earthquakes are no stranger to the archipelago. In 2022, a 7.0-magnitude tremor in Luzon killed five and injured over 100, while a 2019 quake of magnitude 6.1 left at least 11 dead.
