At least 37 dead in latest tremor to strike the southern Philippine island
MANILA -- The death toll from the 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck off the south coast of the Philippine island of Mindanao on Monday has risen to 37, disaster management authorities reported.
The Civil Defense Office noted most of the dead were from areas near the epicenter, with 33 deaths spread across Sarangani province, General Santos City and South Cotabato. Four deaths were recorded in the nearby Davao region. More than 150 people were injured, according to local media.
In General Santos City on Tuesday, rescuers were seen combing through a collapsed commercial building looking for two people still thought to be buried under the rubble.
Authorities said they are still conducting damage assessments across Mindanao, one of the Philippines' major island groups, where the earthquake triggered tsunamis of up to 1.4 meters in height. There were scores of aftershocks, with a number greater than magnitude 6.
The quake struck at 7:37 a.m. in the coastal city of General Santos, damaging buildings, including schools, shops and other commercial establishments. The airport was closed for several hours, and was limited to government, military and humanitarian flights after operations resumed.
The Philippines education department said Monday that more than 500 classrooms in General Santos City were damaged because of the quake. The tremor occurred on what was the first day of the new school year.
Monday's earthquake came eight months after 79 people were killed when a 6.9-magnitude quake hit near the central island of Cebu. Two weeks later two powerful, but less deadly, tremors struck Mindanao.
Tsunami alerts were also reported in parts of neighboring Indonesia and in the Malaysian state of Sabah, but no damage was reported in either region. They are part of the so-called Ring of Fire -- the tectonically active area that stretches around the Pacific.
