At least 69 dead in 6.9-magnitude Cebu quake

President Marcos has ordered the full mobilization of government agencies following the 6.9-magnitude earthquake that hit northern Cebu, killing at least 69 people and causing injuries to more than 140 on Tuesday night, Sept. 30.

- BY MARTIN SADONGDONG, ARGYLL CYRUS GEDUCOS, MERLINA HERNANDO-MALIPOT, ELLALYN DE VERA-RUIZ, JEL SANTOS, AARON RECUENCO, and RAYMUND ANTONIO

"Buong puso akong nakikiramay sa mga pamilyang nawalan ng mahal sa buhay, at kasama sa aking mga dasal ang kaligtasan ng mga nasugatan at lahat ng naapektuhan ng lindol (I wholeheartedly sympathize with the families who lost their loved ones, and my prayers are for the safety of the injured and all those affected by the earthquake)," Marcos said Wednesday, Oct. 1.

Foreign governments were quick to send their sympathies to the Philippines following the earthquake, as relayed by the ambassadors of Canada, the European Union, United States, Australia, and Japan.

All hands on deck

The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) conducted full-scale disaster response operations on Tuesday night with search and rescue (SAR) operations concentrating in Bogo City, the hardest-hit area.

The quake occurred at 9:59 p.m. with its epicenter traced 17 kilometers northeast of Bogo City. It had a depth of focus of 10 kilometers, and was tectonic in origin.

The earthquake trapped an unspecified number of residents in collapsed houses, nightclubs and other businesses in Bogo and outlying rural towns in Cebu province.

Rescuers scrambled to find survivors Wednesday. Army troops, police and civilian volunteers backed by backhoes and sniffer dogs were deployed Wednesday to carry out house-to-house searches for survivors.

The death toll in Bogo was expected to rise, according to officials, who said intermittent rain and damaged bridges and roads were hampering the race to save lives.

"We're still in the golden hour of our search and rescue," Office of Civil Defense deputy administrator Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro IV said in a news briefing. "There are still many reports of people who were pinned or hit by debris." President Marcos said Cabinet officials are already in affected areas to deliver aid and assess the damage.