At least 69 people have been killed after a powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck the central Philippines late Tuesday, leaving homes flattened and communities devastated.
Rescuers with backhoes and sniffer dogs worked through collapsed buildings on Wednesday in Bogo City and nearby towns in Cebu province, where most of the casualties were reported.
The quake, triggered by movement along an undersea fault line at a shallow depth of just 5 kilometers, hit around 10 p.m. local time.
The epicenter was located 19 kilometers northeast of Bogo, a coastal city of 90,000 people.
Civil Defence officials warned that the toll could rise as many remain trapped under debris. “We’re still in the golden hour of our search and rescue,” deputy administrator Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro IV said.
The disaster, one of the most powerful quakes to hit the region in over a decade, was worsened by damaged bridges, blocked roads, and sporadic rain hampering rescue efforts.
