A powerful 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck the Philippine island of Luzon on Wednesday, killing at least one person and damaging buildings in the northern province of Abra, sending strong tremors through the capital Manila. Falling debris killed a 25-year-old man, Abra Vice Governor Joy Bernos said, when the quake struck about 11 km (six miles) southeast of the town of Dolores at a shallow depth of 10 km (6 miles), according to the U.S. Geological survey data. “Despite the sad news of the damage caused by the earthquake, we are ensuring a quick response to those in need and affected by this disaster,” President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said on Facebook.
The earthquake struck close to the political stronghold of the Marcos family. A hospital in Abra province was evacuated after a building partially collapsed, but no casualties were reported, officials said. Bernos posted photos of the damaged Abra Hospital on her Facebook account, showing a gaping hole in its facade. Other photos showed hospital beds, including one with a patient, being moved across the road and hospital staff being evacuated. “We are still experiencing aftershocks. We have received reports of damage to homes. But no casualties yet,” Rovelyn Villamor, mayor of Lagangilang town in Abra province, told radio station DZRH.
Renato Solidum, director of the state seismological agency, told radio station DZRH that strong aftershocks were expected. “The focus is on Abra and nearby provinces. This is a big earthquake,” Solidum said, adding that landslides were reported in some parts of Abra, particularly in the town of Manabo. Home to nearly 250,000 people, Abra is a landlocked province on north of the Philippines.Its deep valleys and sloping hills are sandwiched by jagged mountains.
Prone to natural disasters, the Philippines is located on the seismically active Pacific “Ring of Fire,” a band of volcanoes and fault lines that wrap around the rim of the Pacific Ocean. Earthquakes are common and there are an average of 20 typhoons each year, some of which cause deadly landslides. Eric Singson, a congressman in Ilocos Sur province, also in the north, told radio station DZMM that the earthquake was strongly felt there and lasted 30 seconds or more. I thought my house was going to fall down,” Singson said. “Now we are trying to reach the people… Right now there are tremors, so we are outside our home.” The earthquake damaged historic buildings in the city of Vigan, known for its old Spanish colonial architecture, on the west coast of Luzon.
Tourist Edison Adducul told the radio that he was taking photos of the bell tower of Bantay Church in Vigan when the earthquake struck, shaking the tower for up to three minutes. Senator Imee Marcos said several churches were damaged. “Ancient bricks and coral stones fell from the Bantay Bell Tower,” she said. The quake was also felt in Manila, where several buildings were evacuated, some people were forced to flee from the 30th floor of one building, and the city’s subway rail systems were halted during rush hour.
