Rescue Efforts Underway as Philippine Quake Death Toll Hits 37

The death toll from the strongest earthquake to hit the Philippines in five decades has increased to 37, an official said, with rescue operations underway as families and businesses grapple with huge damage to properties.

Office of Civil Defense Assistant Secretary Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro said 487 people were injured and four were reported missing following the temblor that struck Monday morning.

“Our search and rescue and rapid damage assessment are ongoing. These numbers can change,” he told local radio DZBB on Tuesday. “Many residential and commercial establishments collapsed.”

Around 2,000 houses were affected, more than 400 of which were totally wrecked, Alejandro said, adding that 117 government facilities and around 20 bridges were damaged.

A 7.8-magnitude quake struck the southern Philippine island of Mindanao at 7:37 a.m. on Monday, the most powerful to rock the Southeast Asian nation since 1976 and the strongest globally this year, according to US Geological Survey data. [inline-ad-2]

Listed tuna canner Alliance Select Foods International Inc. said its facility in General Santos City has been temporarily suspended after sustaining damage from the quake and will reopen next week.

Mall operator SM Prime Holdings Inc. said on Facebook that its shopping mall in General Santos, also damaged in the temblor, remains closed on Tuesday.

Jollibee Foods Corp. said all its staff are safe following the earthquake, which severely damaged one of its fast food outlets in General Santos.

Philippine civil aviation authorities have limited operations at the General Santos airport to military, government and humanitarian flights, prompting carriers Cebu Air Inc. and Philippine Airlines Inc. to cancel dozens of flights through Thursday.

The office of Vice President Sara Duterte, who hails from Mindanao, said on Tuesday that it has deployed a food truck to provide meals to disaster responders, adding it’s ready to augment ongoing relief and recovery efforts for communities affected by the quake.

Her political rival, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., on Monday ordered relevant state agencies to act immediately, saying the national government “will not leave Mindanao behind.”

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, whom Marcos met in Tokyo last month, said her nation is ready to provide assistance to the Philippines. Others to pledge support include the US and Taiwan.

The Philippines is located in the Pacific Ring of Fire, making the archipelago prone to frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Last year, more than 70 people died after a 6.9 magnitude earthquake rocked the central province of Cebu.