Mindanao earthquake death toll drops to 76 in latest NDRRMC figures

Death toll from the Mindanao earthquake is down to 76, according to the latest National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) situation report released on Friday.

The NDRRMC said the death toll was revised from 78 on Thursday to 76 following the validation of casualty reports.

Four individuals previously listed as fatalities in Sarangani were reclassified as missing persons, while two additional deaths were recorded in South Cotabato.

NDRRMC said that more than 1.45 million people across Mindanao remain affected due to the earthquake.

As of June 19, authorities recorded 348,579 affected families or 1,453,372 individuals across Regions IX, XI, XII, and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). The number is higher than the 1.41 million affected individuals reported a day earlier.

The June 8 earthquake has also left extensive damage to homes and infrastructure.

Authorities recorded 74,810 damaged houses, including more than 13,000 that were totally destroyed, while damage to infrastructure was estimated at over P1.35 billion.

At least 84,799 individuals remain displaced, with 21,448 people staying in 46 evacuation centers and another 63,351 temporarily sheltering with relatives or friends.

The NDRRMC also reported 8,054 aftershocks since the quake, including 87 that were felt. The earthquake generated a tsunami that was detected in several coastal areas, with the highest recorded wave reaching 1.48 meters in Kiamba, Sarangani.

Government agencies have so far provided more than P255 million worth of assistance to affected families, while eight countries have offered international humanitarian assistance to support recovery efforts.

The magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck off Maasim, Sarangani on June 8 and was felt across several regions in Mindanao, triggering landslides, damaging homes and infrastructure, and prompting tsunami warnings in parts of the southern Philippines. —VAL, GMA News