Cebu earthquake reported death toll reaches 26 —OCD

The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) on Wednesday said 26 people have been reported killed in the magnitude 6.9 earthquake that hit Bogo City, Cebu on Tuesday evening. 

Most of the fatalities were reported in Bogo with 19, followed by San Remigio with five, and Tabuelan and Medellin with one each, according to the OCD.

Aside from this, the OCD said 147 people were also reported injured. 

Most of the injured were reported in Bogo with 119, followed by San Francisco with 14, Tabuelan and Catmon with five each, and Daanbantayan with four.

“Situation still being assessed. We've been receiving reports of casualties from different sources. However, we still need to validate those reports to provide a clearer picture,” OCD deputy spokesperson Diego Mariano told reporters in a message.

Incidents of landslide, structural fire, and collapsed structure were reported due to the impact of the earthquake, according to a report of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) as of 8 a.m. 

At least 22 infrastructures were damaged. Five bridges and one road also became impassable.

Power interruptions were experienced in eight areas, and communication line issues were encountered in three areas.

Two seaports suspended operations, leaving 134 passengers stranded.

Classes in 46 areas and work schedules in four areas were suspended due to effects of the earthquake.

A state of calamity was declared in San Remigio and Tabuelan in Cebu province.

According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), the earthquake occurred at 9:59 p.m. on Tuesday.

The quake was initially reported as a magnitude 6.7 before being upgraded to 6.9. It had a depth of five kilometers and was tectonic in origin.

PHIVOLCS said that a total of 379 aftershocks have already been recorded as of Wednesday morning. The strength of the aftershocks ranged from magnitude 1.4 to 4.8 and only three of them were felt.

“Inaasahan natin na magkakaroon pa ng mga aftershocks in the next few days. Sometimes the aftershocks would last for several weeks,” PHIVOLCS director Dr. Teresito Bacolcol told GMA Integrated News’ Unang Balita in an interview. 

(We expect there will be more aftershocks in the next few days. Sometimes the aftershocks last for several weeks.) 

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. ordered various government agencies to mobilize and provide immediate aid to communities affected by the earthquake. 

Following the President’s order, the Department of Health (DOH) swiftly assessed its personnel closest to the area, according to the Presidential Communications Office. 

For its part, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Field Office 7 Central Visayas already intensified coordination with the affected LGUs to provide resource augmentation and address the needs of their constituents.

At present, the DSWD has P379 million in standby funds and has 2.4 million boxes of family food packs (FFPs) prepositioned nationwide. 

Meanwhile, the Visayas power grid will be placed on yellow alert on Wednesday as several power plants went on forced outage following the earthquake.

In an advisory, the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) said the yellow alert will be hoisted from 1 p.m. to 12 midnight on October 1, 2025. —KG/ VAL, GMA Integrated News