Death toll from southern Philippines earthquake rises to 37

The number of fatalities from the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that rocked the southern Philippines has risen to 37, whilst four others remain missing. Rescue teams continued searching across several severely affected areas on Mindanao island as of Tuesday, according to local media reports. The earthquake, which struck off the coast of Sarangani Province at 7.37 a.m. local time on Monday, caused extensive damage across various parts of Mindanao. Buildings collapsed, electricity and water services were disrupted, and landslides occurred in several locations, Philstar reported. Diego Mariano, Deputy Spokesman for the Office of Civil Defence (OCD), said 33 fatalities were recorded in the Soccsksargen region. Of that number, 18 people died in Sarangani Province, 12 in General Santos City, and three in South Cotabato. Four other fatalities were reported from the neighbouring province of Davao. OCD Spokesman Junie Castillo said most victims died from being struck by building debris and structures that collapsed during the quake. Authorities also reported at least 479 people were injured, comprising 456 in Region 12 and 23 in Davao Province. The earthquake affected around 88,000 residents in the southern part of Mindanao, including 22,690 people forced to evacuate. Many residents are still staying in open spaces due to continuing aftershocks and concerns over the safety of building structures. Search, rescue and evacuation operations are currently focused on General Santos City and Sarangani, the two most severely impacted areas. The government reported damage to nine bridges and 19 road sections. Infrastructure losses are estimated to exceed 900 million Philippine pesos (around US$14.6 million). A total of 1,889 houses were reported damaged, including around 1,500 homes completely destroyed. Property losses are estimated at 15 million Philippine pesos (around US$243,607). Damage assessments are still ongoing and figures may change. The OCD stated it is planning the construction of emergency tent areas to shelter residents who cannot yet return to their homes due to building damage and ongoing safety risks. The Philippine Department of Education also reported significant damage to school facilities in Mindanao. Based on initial assessments, 1,159 classrooms across 231 state schools spread over five regions sustained damage. After the main earthquake struck, the United States Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre stated that tsunami waves more than three metres above normal tide levels were possible in several coastal areas. However, the tsunami warning was later lifted by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology after observations showed the wave heights that occurred were too small to cause damage. Previously, the Philippine and Indonesian governments had urged residents living in vulnerable coastal areas to immediately move to higher ground as a precautionary measure. Approximately two hours after the main quake, the region was jolted again by a magnitude 6.1 aftershock. On Tuesday, a magnitude 5.1 aftershock occurred again, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). The series of aftershocks has raised fears of additional damage while hampering ongoing search and rescue efforts.