Ground trembles, once more beneath the Philippines. In recent weeks, the Nation has been experiencing a peat of earthquakes, tearing the lives of citizens and leaving the affected provinces under the state of calamity. Recently homes have been damaged, buildings crack and crash, bridges collapse, families displaced and fear continues to ripple as thousands of aftershocks follow from one to another.

September 30, initially a massive 6.7 magnitude earthquake later upgraded to 6.9 magnitude earthquake striked the coast of Bogo City, in the province of Cebu. The strength causes chaos—sending ripples of energy that shakes mountains. This left the citizens and areas of Cebu broken and displaced.

According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (NDRRMC), the quake resulted in 72 confirmed deaths and 294 injured individuals. Furthermore 94, 859 houses were damaged and 5,641 houses were destroyed. The citizens affected were reported to be around 745,279 people across 262 Baranggays in Central and Eastern Visayas. In addition, 3 bridges and 1 road were rendered impassable, power interruption in 8 areas, and communication lines in areas.

In the most recent reports, a big number of aftershocks in Cebu, were recorded as over 12,000 as of October 13, 2024.

Hardly 2 weeks later, another earthquake struck Mindanao on October 10, at 9:43 AM. A peaceful day at Manay in the province of Davao near the Philippine trench was ruined by a violent earthquake with a magnitude of 7.4. This earthquake triggered a tsunami alert for coast within 300 km or 186 miles, this alert was later lifted.

The ground shook again at 7:12 PM, another earthquake with a magnitude of 6.8 around the same location. It quickly triggered a tsunami alert, and the citizens near coastal areas were quickly evacuated.

According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, the tragedy took 8 lives and injured 395 individuals. In addition, 125,283 families and 491,258 individuals were affected among 7 provinces; 2,155 houses, 275 frameworks, 32 road sections, and 7 bridges were reported damaged because of the Earthquake.

The two earthquakes of Visayas and Mindanao were reported to be the rare occurrence of the ‘twin earthquake.’ According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHILVOCS) these two earthquakes were far from related to each other. Although, both tragedies greatly affected the lives of civilians among Mindanao and Visayas.

How do Earthquakes work?

The Philippines being located at the most active geological zone—the Pacific Ring of Fire, made it more prone to strong Quakes. Along the Pacific ring of fire, the Philippine sea plate and eurasian plate collide against each other. These movements build an enormous pressure underground, each shaking, no matter how strong and weak proves the restless energy beneath the island of Philippines.

BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY: EARTHQUAKES

The Quake left a striking trauma among individuals, but these events could serve as a lesson of preparedness. Earthquakes are natural disasters beyond human control—but efforts will strengthen our Nation against natural tragedies.

Jennica Chrish M. Lattao

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Ground in Motion: Relentless Quakes Among the Nation