COTABATO CITY—Five persons were hurt, 21 houses damaged, and eight landslides were reported in the provinces of North Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat following Sunday’s twin tremors that jolted south-central Mindanao, disaster officials said.
Arnulfo Villaruz, North Cotabato Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (PDRRMC) warning and action officer said the five persons sustained minor injuries due to panic while the ground was shaking.
Villaruz said the rapid assessment conducted by the provincial engineering office showed that 21 houses have been damaged by the quake in the towns of M’lang and Kabacan, both in North Cotabato.
“Two houses were severely damaged, while 19 sustained minor damages,” he said.
He added that two local church buildings were also partially damaged in M’lang, and so with two private business establishments in Kabacan that incurred minor damages in the structures.
Villaruz said that of the eight landslides reported in North Cotabato, seven occurred in Makilala and another in nearby M’lang town.
In Sultan Kudarat province, the provincial disaster office reported that a hospital in Isulan town incurred minor damages.
In Kidapawan City, work at the city hall has been suspended Monday morning to pave way for a building inspection.
Mayor Joseph Evangelista also said that patients in at least three major hospitals in the city were evacuated outside the buildings but later returned to their respective rooms after building assessment and evaluation were completed.
The Magnitude 4.8 quake occurred at 7:28 a.m., and another Magnitude 6.1 hit at 12:22 p.m. Both had their epicenter in Magsaysay town in Davao del Sur.
Engr. Ramil Amilbahar, Philippine Institute of Volcanology Cotabato station seismologist, said Sunday’s tremors were extra strong since it was felt to as far as Bukidnon and Misamis Occidental, Maguindanao, and Sultan Kudarat, which were hundreds of kilometers away from the epicenter. PNA