Patients wait outside Cebu Provincial Hospital in Bogo City after a strong earthquake struck the area in Cebu province on Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025. (AP Photo)
Three more people were added to the list of fatalities from the magnitude 6.9 earthquake that hit Cebu and nearby areas on Tuesday night, Sept. 30, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said.
Based on the latest NDRRMC report, the inclusion of the three fatalities increased the death toll from the quake to 72 while at least 294 people were reported injured, most of them were hit by debris during the tremor.
The NDDRMC, however, said that the casualty figures are still for validation.
The quake, with epicenter located 17 kilometer north of Bogo City in Cebu, also affected around 171,000 people from 47,221 families in Central Visayas.
Assessment teams were immediately deployed in various parts of Cebu and nearby areas and based on the latest data, six bridges and three roads were rendered impassable.
Several establishments were also damaged and rapid assessments of buildings and critical infrastructure was already ordered by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
A total of 606 houses in Central Visayas were damaged, 96 houses of them totally collapsed. A total of 87 infrastructure in the same region were also damaged based on the NDRRMC report.
Power and communication lines were also affected and as of 11 p.m. on Wednesday, the NDRRMC said 48 areas in Western Visayas and 10 areas in Central Visayas are still suffering from power outages.
Three areas in Central Visayas are also experiencing communication problems.
Additional manpower were sent to Cebu from various government agencies to assist in the disaster response that include relief operations and search and rescue.