Cebu Quake Death Toll Rises to 53, Hundreds Injured
Cebu, Philippines – At least 53 people have been confirmed dead and nearly 300 injured after a powerful earthquake struck the central Philippine island of Cebu earlier this week, officials said Thursday.
The magnitude 6.9 quake hit late Tuesday night off the island’s northern end near the city of Bogo, home to about 90,000 residents, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS). The tremor damaged power lines, bridges, and several buildings, including a century-old church.
The Bogo hospital reported 30 deaths in the city alone, with dozens more victims recorded across the wider central Visayas region. Another 294 people were injured, authorities said, with many still being treated for fractures and other quake-related injuries.
Survivors shared harrowing accounts of their escape. Richard Guion, his arm in heavy bandages, said he and his wife were trapped under their home’s collapsed wall until their 17-year-old son, who had been outside on his phone, pulled them to safety. His wife suffered a broken foot.
Officials said this was the country’s deadliest earthquake since 2013, when a 7.2-magnitude tremor in nearby Bohol killed 222 people.
The Philippines, located on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” experiences more than 800 earthquakes every year.
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