No one died or got hurt following a magnitude 6.1 earthquake that struck off the coast of Sarangani, Davao Occidental, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) reported Sunday, June 29.

OCD Administrator, Undersecretary Ariel Nepomuceno said the affected areas include the entire Davao Region (Region 11) and Soccsksargen (Region 12) which covers South Cotabato, Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani province, and General Santos City.

“Unang tinatanong kung mayroong namatay o nasaktan, wala naman po (The first question asked was whether anyone died or was injured, there were none),” Nepomuceno said in a radio interview over dzBB, citing reports to the OCD as of 8 p.m. Saturday, June 28.

No major infrastructure was also damaged but Nepomuceno ordered city and municipal disaster officials to reassess to determine if there are areas hit by landslide.

“Kapag dire-diretso ang ulan, pumapasok hanggang ngayon ang habagat at ‘yung ITCZ [Intertropical Convergence Zone] nasa Visayas at Mindanao, lumalambot ang lupa kapag sunod-sunod na araw. Kapag nagkaroon ng lindol, ‘yun ang nakakabahala baka magkaroon ng landslide (When the rain is continuous, we are affected by the southwest monsoon and the Intertropical Convergence Zone over the Visayas and Mindanao, the soil softens after several days [of rain]. If an earthquake occurs, that’s concerning because it could trigger a landslide),” Nepomuceno pointed out.

The quake occurred at 7:07 a.m. on Saturday and its epicenter was located 85 kilometers southeast off the coast of Sarangani town.

“Kahit papaano nagbubugna ang ating pinipiit na kampanya dahil tumaas na ang kaalaman ng ating mga kaababayan na seryosohin natin ang earthquake dirll dahil hindi naman natin alam kung kailan magkakaroon ng lindol (Somehow, our persistent campaign is bearing fruit because public awareness has increased since our fellow citizens are now taking earthquake drills seriously, knowing that we can never predict when an earthquake will happen),” Nepomuceno said.

For long-term solutions, the OCD chief said that he requested for a meeting with Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary to strengthen the level of awareness among the youth, particularly in schools.

“Sila po ang mas vulnerable po kapag nasa eskwelahan tayo (They are the ones more vulnerable when we are at school),” he said.

Nepomuceno said he wants to copy Japan’s high-level of awareness which includes disaster readiness in the school curriculum.

He also noted the importance of implementing engineering solutions to build stronger infrastructures.

“Sana maging mas mahigpit po talaga ang mga local government units. Talagang gampanan po nila ang kanilang tungkulin na maging mas mahigpit, tuparin po yung mahigpit na titignan ang applications at building and construction permits, tama ang plano, tama ang materyales kapag iniimplement ‘yan (Hopefully, the local government units will become much stricter. They must truly fulfill their duty to be more stringent by thoroughly reviewing applications and building and construction permits, ensuring the plans are correct and the materials are appropriate when implemented),” he said.

“At importante dapat wala na iyan sa mga peligrosong lugar gaya ng landslide-prone areas o liquefaction-prone areas, ibig sabihin malulusaw ang lupa (And it is important that these should no longer be allowed in dangerous areas such as landslide-prone or liquefaction-prone areas, meaning areas where the soil can liquefy),” he added.