Rescuers in the southern Philippine city of General Santos were forced to evacuate a partially collapsed grocery store on Wednesday as a strong aftershock rattled the area, complicating recovery efforts following a devastating 7.8-magnitude earthquake that has killed at least 45 people and left 17 others missing. The dramatic scene unfolded when a safety officer blew a whistle and shouted warnings, prompting about 30 firefighters and coast guard personnel to dash to safety as concrete debris fell from the leaning three-story building.
The initial quake struck on Monday, causing widespread destruction across southern Mindanao, the country's second most populous region. General Santos, a bustling commercial hub known as the Philippines' tuna capital, was particularly hard hit.
Ressa Mia Tactaquin-Betoya, a spokesperson for the firefighters searching for the last missing employee in the ruined grocery, described the aftershock as frightening. "It was a strong aftershock and an alarm was immediately sounded so those inside and under the damaged building can run out for a headcount," she said.
"It was scary because we don't want our rescuers to be harmed so the area must be secured before they can go back in." The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology reported more than 2,100 aftershocks since Monday, including several with magnitudes up to 6.4, which are strong enough to cause additional casualties and damage.
Officials said more than 25,000 people remain displaced, with many staying in 45 government-run emergency shelters, still too traumatized to return home. Monday's earthquake was one of the most powerful to hit the Philippines in half a century.
It injured at least 630 people and damaged more than 3,100 houses, 29 roads, 11 bridges, and over 100 government buildings. The international airport in General Santos was also damaged, forcing an indefinite shutdown except for government and military flights transporting aid and disaster-response personnel, according to Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines spokesperson Eric Apolonio.
About 6,000 public school buildings in affected provinces must be assessed before classes can resume.
The quake struck on the first day of classes nationwide after a two-month summer break, and many of the injured were young students who had gathered for morning flag-raising ceremonies. Most deaths were caused by falling debris from collapsed buildings and landslides in General Santos and the nearby provinces of Sarangani, South Cotabato, and Davao Occidental.
At least one person died after being swept out to sea, as waves up to 4.6 feet above tide level were measured in the southern Philippines. Smaller waves reached Indonesia, Palau, and as far away as southern Japan before tsunami warnings were lifted.
Seven swimmers near General Santos were swept away by strong currents minutes after the quake; three were rescued, one swam back to shore, one drowned, and two remain missing. The strong currents were likely triggered by the earthquake, said Teresito Bacolcol, head of the volcanology and seismology institute.
The earthquake was caused by movement in the Cotabato Trench and ranks among the strongest since the same undersea depression triggered an 8.1-magnitude quake on August 17, 1976, which generated tsunami waves and killed about 8,000 people. The Philippines, located on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," is one of the world's most disaster-prone countries, frequently experiencing earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.