Hanoi (VNA) – At least 78 people were killed and 30 remain missing after a 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck off Sarangani province in the southern Philippines on June 8, the country's National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported on June 18.
The NDRRMC said the earthquake has affected over 357,000 families, or some 1.5 million people. Of those affected, around 5,500 families, or nearly 22,000 individuals, are currently staying in 47 evacuation centres.
About 74,700 houses sustained damage, among which 13,700 were labelled as "totally damaged". A total of 774 infrastructure facilities were damaged, resulting in losses of 1.29 billion PHP (approximately 21.3 million USD). The cost to agriculture is estimated at 29.8 million PHP, said the council.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said the tectonic earthquake occurred at 7:37 am on June 8 (local time) at a depth of 33km, with the epicentre 32km southwest of the coast of Maasim town in Sarangani province on Mindanao Island.
The earthquake was one of the strongest to strike the Philippines in decades. The death toll continued to rise in the days following the disaster as rescue teams gained access to areas isolated by landslides and damaged infrastructure.
According to previous reports from the NDRRMC and the Office of Civil Defence (OCD), the number of fatalities increased from 37 on June 9 to 45 on June 10, 55 on June 12, 61–65 between June 13 and 15, before reaching 78 in the latest report released on June 18.
The Philippines is highly prone to earthquakes as it lies along the Pacific Ring of Fire, one of the world's most seismically and volcanically active regions./.
