Heavily damaged hospital, houses abandoned after Davao Oriental earthquakes

A hospital and some houses were abandoned after these were heavily damaged by the consecutive earthquakes that hit Manay, Davao Oriental.

According to Emil Sumangil’s Tuesday report on “24 Oras,” several structures have collapsed while a number were heavily damaged in the town of Lupon despite its distance from the municipality of Manay.

Some residents of Barangay Calapagan were forced to leave their homes and evacuate to safer locations as large cracks were discovered inside their houses and roads outside.

Earlier today, aftershocks were felt and rocked the structures, triggering fear in residents.

The Luchavez family's house was one of those not spared by the tremors.

Juel Luchavez said he and his wife were able to get out of their house before it collapsed.

Currently, they are taking shelter at a nearby church. Luchavez asked the local government for aid.

Eucharistic celebrations in St. Francis Xavier Parish in Manay Town were conducted in an activity center after the church’s canopy collapsed and had cracks on the ceiling.

The Manay District Hospital was also abandoned after portions of its ceiling were torn open, walls collapsed, and apparatus damaged.

Currently, clearing operations in the hospital are ongoing, while its patients were transferred to the nearest health centers.

Among the fatalities of the Davao Oriental earthquake is 47-year-old Juvy Lopez, who, according to her daughter, suffered a heart attack caused by the earthquakes.

Hence Lopez, Juvy’s daughter, is seeking assistance for their family. —Mariel Celine Serquiña/RF, GMA Integrated News