8 killed, 60 Injured in Earthquake, Aftershocks in Philippines

Manila, July 28, 2018:

An earthquake of magnitude 5.4 that struck the Batanes islands in the Philippines by an aftershock of magnitude 5.9 on Saturday killed eight people and injured 60, disaster officials said. Another big aftershock struck a little later, according to Philippine government data.

Officials said people were asleep when the initial earthquake struck. Office of Civil Defense (OCD) administrator Ricardo Jalad said the first tremor caused houses to collapse, killing five people. Three others were killed in the following earthquake. As in other parts of Batanes, many houses in Itbayat are made of stone to withstand strong storms because the province lies in the path of tropical cyclones.

The Philippines military was also deploying an aircraft to send supplies and bring out injured,Gato said she was standing outside in an open space with more than 1,000 people.

Aside from collapsed limestone houses, damaged structures include the historic belfry of the Nuestra Senora Del Rosario Church.

Inside Northeast’s Campaign #LetsSaveDeeporBeel is now supported by Oil India Limited (OIL). Join us as we continue the awareness campaign to preserve the only Ramsar site in Assam which is facing immense threats. We need your help to preserve this site of great ecological importance. Join the #LetsSaveDeeporBeel campaign and tweet about it, and do tag us on Twitter. Let’s make some noise!