Philippines: at least 69 dead after 6.9 magnitude earthquake in central Philippines

The 6.9 magnitude earthquake in central Philippines has left "up to 69 people" dead so far, while the injured are overwhelming hospitals on Cebu and rescue operations continue in several collapsed buildings.

The shallow quake struck just before 10:00 p.m. (local time) Tuesday off the northern coast of Cebu island, near Bogo, a city of 90.000 inhabitants, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

"We are receiving reports of up to 69 people who would have perished in the quake," Manila Civil Defense Office of Civil Defense Vice Administrator Rafaelito Alejandro told reporters in Manila.

The governor of that province, Pamela Baricuatro, said on Facebook that "due to the large volume of patients with serious injuries, medical personnel attended to some of them outside the hospital."

Injured children cried and adults screamed as they were treated in beds under blue tents outside the Cebu Provincial Hospital in Bogo. Nearby, hospital workers were using stretchers to carry body bags to vans to be moved to nearby morgues, AFP observed.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council reported 147 injured in the central islands, where 22 buildings were damaged.

Rescue efforts

The Cebu provincial government called on its official Facebook page for medical volunteers to help in the rescue efforts following the earthquake. However, rescue efforts were hampered by darkness and the 379 aftershocks reported by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology.

The Cebu provincial government reported that a commercial building and a school in Bantayan collapsed in the quake, while a fast-food restaurant in Bogo suffered severe damage.

"We felt the tremor at the station, it was very strong. We saw our locker moving back and forth. We got a little dizzy, but we're all fine," said Joey Leeguid, a San Fernando firefighter.