Death toll from Philippine earthquake rises to 11, with 24 people missing, mostly in rubble of a supermarket

PORAC, Philippines (AP) — Death toll from Philippine earthquake rises to 11, with 24 people missing, mostly in rubble of a supermarket.</s>The U.S. Geological Survey says a magnitude 6.3 earthquake has hit the central Philippines, a day after 6.1 quake hit the country's north and killed at least 11 people.

The new quake hit Tuesday afternoon and was centered 8 miles east of Tutubigan in the country's central region. The quake was relatively deep at 43 miles.

A supermarket crashed down in Monday's powerful earthquake, which damaged buildings and an airport in the northern Philippines. The death toll is now 11, with more missing.

A resident looks at the rubble of St. Catherine church, including a toppled head of a statue, following a 6.1 magnitude earthquake in Porac township, Pampanga province, north of Manila, Philippines, Tuesday, April 23, 2019. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)</s>A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck the Philippines main island of Luzon on Monday and several people were killed in collapsed buildings, media reported.

The quake struck 60 km (37 miles) northwest of the capital, Manila, at a depth of 40 km (25 miles), the U.S Geological Survey (USGS).

The governor of Pampanga province told a radio station that several people had been killed. Media reported some structures had collapsed and the Clark International Airport, a former U.S. military base, had suffered some damage and had closed.

Tall buildings swayed in Manila’s main business district and some people evacuated their offices.

The Philippines is on the seismically active Pacific “Ring of Fire”, a horse-shoe shaped band of volcanoes and fault lines circling the edges of the Pacific Ocean.</s>Death toll from Philippine earthquake rises to 11, with 24 people missing, mostly in rubble of a supermarket

PORAC, Philippines (AP) — Death toll from Philippine earthquake rises to 11, with 24 people missing, mostly in rubble of a supermarket.</s>The U.S. Geological Survey says a magnitude 6.3 earthquake has hit the central Philippines, a day after 6.1 quake hit the country's north and killed at least 11 people.

The new quake hit Tuesday afternoon and was centered 8 miles east of Tutubigan in the country's central region. The quake was relatively deep at 43 miles.

A supermarket crashed down in Monday's powerful earthquake, which damaged buildings and an airport in the northern Philippines. The death toll is now 11, with more missing.

A resident looks at the rubble of St. Catherine church, including a toppled head of a statue, following a 6.1 magnitude earthquake in Porac township, Pampanga province, north of Manila, Philippines, Tuesday, April 23, 2019. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)</s>UPDATE: 16 dead

in Luzon quake — NDRRMC

By DEMPSEY REYES

SAN FERNANDO CITY, Pampanga: At least 16 people were killed while 112 others were injured following Monday afternoon’s magnitude 6.1 earthquake that struck several areas in Luzon, authorities said on Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters before the situation briefing here with President Rodrigo Duterte, Health Secretary Franisco Duque 3rd said that the 15 deaths were from Pampanga, while one was from Zambales.

The quake’s epicenter was placed at Castillejos, Zambales.

He said rescuers were still looking for 15 people who were reported missing following the quake.

Of the 15 missing, 14 are believed to be trapped at the collapsed Chuzon Supermarket in Barangay Cangatba in Porac, Pampanga, while one was missing in Zambales.

In its report released to the media earlier on Tuesday, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said of the 15 dead, five were from Chuzon; seven from other villages, also in Porac; two from Lubao; and one in Angeles City.

The NDRRMC said the lone death in Zambales was from San Marcelino.

The disaster agency, however, has not released the identities of the victims.

The reported fatalities are still subject for validation by authorities conducting rescue operations in the area.

The NDRRMC also reported that 29 structures and buildings sustained damage following the strong quake.

It has also raised its alert status to “blue” since Monday night, with a memorandum directing all regional disaster councils to raise their alerts and continue monitoring their areas of responsibility.

Brig. Gen. Edgard Arevalo, military spokesman, said responders from the Philippine Army and the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) rescued nine persons from the collapsed supermarket.

Arevalo added that the Northern Luzon Command (Nolcom) has deployed a team of seven military officers and 60 enlisted personnel for search and rescue operations in at the Chuzon Supermarket.

The NDRRMC disclosed in its report that various agencies have deployed personnel for rescue operations, including 155 BFP personnel with rescue trucks, fire trucks and an ambulance; 138 policemen; 140 disaster council responders; and 90 personnel from the Philippine Air Force.

Several equipment were also provided, including backhoes, jackhammers, hydraulics and cranes to be used in expediting the search operations.

Apart from the damage in Pampanga, the NDRRMC said it also responded to the landslide at Mt. Bimmukel in San Marcelino, Zambales, where 120 families were evacuated.

The disaster agency also said the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has prepositioned 305,830 family food packs amounting to P110.9 million and non-food items amounting to P764.5 million. CATHERINE S. VALENTE

</s>MANILA: A fresh earthquake hit the Philippines on Tuesday (Apr 23), even as rescuers scramble to reach survivors from a strong quake a day earlier.

The latest temblor struck the southern Philippines at 1.37pm, with the epicentre at San Julian in eastern Samar, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.

It put the magnitude at 6.2.

Authorities are assessing possible damage from the latest quake, which struck at a depth of 70km, but warned that residents should expect aftershocks.



The US Geological Survey (USGS) said the quake measured 6.3 on the Richter scale. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.



The latest temblor was felt in Catbalogan City, Leyte and Tacloban City, which bore the brunt of Typhoon Haiyan in 2013. 



Monday's quake struck northwest of the capital Manila on the main island of Luzon, killing at least 15 people and injuring more than 100.

Rescue teams are scrambling to reach about two dozen people feared buried under a building near Manila. 



The worst of Monday's damage was in the province of Pampanga. The toll could rise as crews fanned out across the mostly rural region to assess damage in isolated hamlets that lost power and communications in one of the area's strongest tremors in years.



More than 400 aftershocks have been registered since the initial quake, Philippine seismologists said.

The Philippines is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, an arc of intense seismic activity that stretches from quake-prone Japan through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin.

This is a developing story. Please refresh for updates.</s>Death toll from Philippine earthquake rises to 11, with 24 people missing, mostly in rubble of a supermarket

PORAC, Philippines (AP) — Death toll from Philippine earthquake rises to 11, with 24 people missing, mostly in rubble of a supermarket.</s>The U.S. Geological Survey says a magnitude 6.3 earthquake has hit the central Philippines, a day after 6.1 quake hit the country's north and killed at least 11 people.

The new quake hit Tuesday afternoon and was centered 8 miles east of Tutubigan in the country's central region. The quake was relatively deep at 43 miles.

A supermarket crashed down in Monday's powerful earthquake, which damaged buildings and an airport in the northern Philippines. The death toll is now 11, with more missing.

A resident looks at the rubble of St. Catherine church, including a toppled head of a statue, following a 6.1 magnitude earthquake in Porac township, Pampanga province, north of Manila, Philippines, Tuesday, April 23, 2019. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)</s>A 6.4 magnitude earthquake has hit the southern Philippines a day after the country was rocked by a 6.1 magnitude tremor.

The new quake hit Tuesday afternoon and was centered eight miles east of the town of Tutubigan, in the country's central region.

It came the day after another tremor rocked the capital Manila, killing at least 11 people, most of whom were crushed inside a supermarket which collapsed in Porac.

Rescuers were searching the remains of the building for another 24 missing people on Tuesday when the new quake hit, though it was not clear whether any fresh damage was caused.

More than 100 others were injured by falling rubble, including in Manila, according to police.

Videos showed buildings in the capital swaying from side to side, while water cascaded from rooftop pools.

The death toll could rise as crews fanned out across the mostly rural region to assess damage in isolated hamlets that lost power and communications in one of the area's strongest tremors in years.

More than 400 aftershocks have been registered since the initial quake, Philippine seismologists said.

Scores of rescuers in the town of Porac were using cranes and jackhammers to peel back the pancaked concrete structure of a four-storey market building where the Red Cross said 24 people were unaccounted for.

'Every minute, every second is critical in this rescue,' Cris Palcis, a volunteer sniffer dog handler, told AFP. 'Time is short for the people under the rubble so we have to be quick.'

Pampanga Governor Lilia Pineda told journalists that rescuers could still hear at least one person trapped beneath the rubble, but the digging was proceeding delicately to avoid accidentally crushing the survivor.

The quake also damaged several centuries-old churches which were crowded with worshippers in recent days as the majority-Catholic Philippines marked the Easter holiday.

Father Roland Moraleja, who is based in Porac, said the 18th century belfry of Saint Catherine of Alexandria church collapsed in the quake.

'It was the only part left from the old church,' he told AFP. 'The historical value is now gone, but we are hopeful that it will rise again.'

High-rise buildings in the capital swayed after the tremor struck Monday evening, leaving some with large cracks in their walls.

Thousands of travellers were stranded after aviation authorities shut down the secondary Clark Airport, which is located on the site of the former US military installation that lies about an hour's drive north of the capital.

It was still closed on Tuesday as officials assessed the heavy damage to the terminal building and some cracking on the air traffic control tower.

The quake was centred on the town of Castillejos, about 100 kilometres (62 miles) northwest of Manila, local geologists said.

Seismologists put the main tremor at 6.3 initially, but subsequently downgraded it to a 6.1 magnitude.

Dani Justo, a martial arts instructor, told AFP she was at her southern Manila home when the quake struck.

'The clothes hanging on our line were really swaying. My shih tzu (dog) dropped flat on the ground,' she added.

The Philippines is part of the Pacific 'Ring of Fire', an arc of intense seismic activity that stretches from quake-prone Japan through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin.
Sixteen people are killed when a magnitude 6.1 earthquake strikes the municipalities of Porac and Lubao, Pampanga province, Philippines at 17:11 Philippine Standard Time.