The death toll from a powerful earthquake in the southern Philippines has risen to 45, while 630 people were injured and 17 remain missing, a civil defence official said on Wednesday.
Most of the additional fatalities were reported in Davao Occidental province, where six people were killed in a landslide and two died after being struck by falling debris, said Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro IV, deputy administrator of the Office of Civil Defence.
Eighteen deaths were recorded in Sarangani province, the epicentre of Monday's magnitude 7.8 earthquake, while 15 were reported in neighbouring South Cotabato province, including General Santos City. One death was reported in Davao del Sur province.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) has recorded more than 2,200 aftershocks since the quake struck on the first day of the academic school year, affecting more than 3.2 million students.
More than 3,000 houses were damaged or destroyed, while roads and bridges also sustained damage, Alejandro said. General Santos City's international airport was damaged but reopened on Tuesday for relief and government flights.
Damage to infrastructure has been estimated at 562.8 million pesos ($9.16 million). Government and private emergency teams continued search, rescue and recovery operations in affected areas, Alejandro said.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr visited General Santos City, one of the worst hit areas, on Wednesday and announced additional financial assistance to the local government and relatives of the deceased.
Marcos said up to 85% of the electric supply that was cut off during the earthquake was back, but water supply was still disrupted.
Some areas were still not reachable by land, but relief supplies have been airlifted to the affected communities, he added.
Marcos said he visited three schools and a hospital damaged by the earthquake.
“This experience was traumatizing for the students and we have a programme with the Department of Health that will help children, [...] and provide a little therapy for the children,” he said.
“We are continuing to work with the local governments to make sure that all the immediate needs of the victims are met right away,” he added.
