Three persons were declared dead and 15 others were injured in Magsaysay town in Davao del Sur in the wake of Wednesday’s magnitude 6.7 earthquake.
Magsaysay Municipal Mayor Arthur Davin confirmed the casualties in an interview with Edge Davao. Davin said that based on their records the casualties were a 5 year old child from Barangay San Isidro who was hit by debris in the head and was declared dead on arrival in a local hospital, and a mother and her one year old child who reportedly died due to landslide in Barangay Lawanit.
“Yung bahay nila ay nasa gilid ng bundok natabunan Yung bahay nila nang mag landslide. Yung husband at kapatid ay ni-retrieve at may mga injuries,” he said.
As of 2 a.m the reported injured persons were placed at 15.
The quake also left the town’s Municipal Hall damaged. The building’s parapet fell and its concrete walls were flattened. Some portions of the roof were also damaged.
Davin said that more structures, infrastructures, and properties could be severely damaged by the earthquake. As of this writing they are still consolidating the figures of the damages including infrastructure. He said assessment of data and monitoring are still ongoing in their command center which is situated beside the Municipal hall.
“We conducted an assessment for those properties or structures situated in critical areas are being cordoned,” he said.
Davin said residents are now afraid to return to their homes for fear of aftershocks while others are also hesitant to stay in the evacuation center.
“Ang mga tao ron hadlok pa mubalik sa ilang mga balay. Nangita sila lugar in low level kay dili na sila muadto evacuation center because of fear,” he said.
He added that some of the residents were also being transferred to a safer neighboring areas to keep them safe from aftershocks.
“We transferred some of them in a safer neighboring puroks to keep them safe from aftershocks. Continues ang atong monitoring with Barangay officials for them to get attention and be brought to a safe place,” he said.
He said they will only advised them to return to their homes until such time that their safety is assured.
This is not the first time that the municipality was hit by an earthquake. Last July 9 an earthquake occurred in the said area but the recent was the strongest according to Davin.
He said they are not the epicenter of the earthquake. He said the Philvocs cited that 22 kilometers west of Tulunan as epicenter.
As of this writing, movement of the ground can be felt every now and then.
Cor Jesu rubble
In Digos City, the earthquake reduced the ground floor of the 5th story Coindre building of Cor Jesu College to rubble.
The concrete walls of the building suffered big cracks, fallen concrete walls, and fractured column posts.
The Coindre building was used by students in Business Administration, Engineering, Hotel and Restaurant Management, Accountancy Business and Entrepreneurship, Education, Information Technology, and Law.
“Kusog Kaayo ug derecho ang linog. Nag panic ang mga estudyante. Dagan ug nagtapok sila sa may gate sa Eskwelahan,” said Jona Dizon, a graduate of Cor Jesu whose family owns a restaurant beside the said school.
Kevin John Espino, school guard, said apart from the Coindre Building, the six-storey senior high school building was also damaged.
