Rescuers today found the corpse of a resident of Itbayat in Batanes inside a cave, a grim discovery that has officially raised the death toll in Saturday’s Batanes earthquake to nine.
The remains of resident Edwin Ponce, buried alive when the earthquake struck Itabayat on Saturday, was found yesterday, according to ABS-CBN News.
The first quake, which struck at 4:15am, had a magnitude of 5.4, while the second one that hit three hours later measured 5.9 on the Richter Scale. About 180 aftershocks have been recorded by the authorities.
BREAKING: Death toll in Itbayat Batanes rises to 9 as the body of the missing resident, Edwin Ponce, have been retrieved by rescue teams. Ponce was buried alive in a cave where he was resting when the earthquake hit the island Saturday. pic.twitter.com/rYTEmD4upa
— Ron Gagalac (@rongagalac) July 29, 2019
According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), the quakes left 63 people injured, though Batanes Gov. Marilou Cayco estimated there were as many as 100 residents hurt. Cayco called on the Department of Health to send more doctors to conduct stress debriefing for residents traumatized by the disasters, reported The Philippine Daily Inquirer.
The NDRMMC estimated that the two earthquakes damaged PHP47 million (US$920,807 million) worth of infrastructure, including houses, schools, and hospitals, reported the Philippine Star. Almost 2,970 affected residents, meanwhile, are still living at the public market in the village of San Rafael in Itbayat, where they are receiving relief goods and other forms of assistance.
President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the release of PHP40 million to be used to construct a clinic while the island’s major hospital is being repaired.
In April, a magnitude 5.7 earthquake hit Central Luzon, affecting nearby areas including Metro Manila.
The Philippines is within the so-called Ring of Fire, a 40,000-kilometer area characterized by active volcanoes and frequent earthquakes.
