Wednesday 16 October 2013

More bodies found in Bohol; quake death toll hits 151


The death toll from the magnitude-7.2 earthquake that struck Central Visayas ballooned to 151 as search and rescue teams recovered more bodies in Bohol province on Wednesday.

In an updated report from Chief Superintendnt Danilo Constantino, director of the Central Visayas police regional office, said that a total of 141 bodies have been recovered from the rubble in quake-hit areas in Bohol.

Constantino said nine fatalities were also recorded in Cebu province and one in Siquijor.

The regional police director added that a total of 302 people have been reported injured during the powerful quake, which struck at 8:21 a.m. on Tuesday.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) had also reported that a total of 23 people have been reported missing in Bohol.

Police Officer 3 John Legaspi, operations clerk of the Bohol Provincial Police Office, told reporters in a phone interview that the fatalities were recorded from 25 towns and majority of the bodies were recovered in the town of Loon.

The agency said that at least 2.8 million people were affected by the quake in three provinces in Central Visayas, including Bohol and Cebu, and more than 10,000 people have been brought to evacuation centers.

The NDRRMC has initially pegged the damage from the earthquake at P75 million. It said P57.8 million of the figure was for the bridges damaged in Bohol and P17.67 million for bridges damaged in Cebu.

During the NDRRMC's briefing on Wednesday afternoon, an official of the Department of Education said 30 schools in two divisions in Bohol and Cebu were damaged by the earthquake while three more schools are being used as evacuation centers.

The education official said that classes in selected schools in Bohol and Cebu have been suspended until Friday.

The Department of Health had also reported that 11 government-run hospitals were damaged by the quake.

The epicenter of the earthquake, which struck at 8:21 a.m., was traced six kilometers southwest of Sagbayan town in Bohol. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology earlier reported that the epicenter was traced nearest Carmen town.

The quake was felt strongest at Intensity 7 in Tagbilaran City, Cebu City, Lapu Lapu City, Mandaue City, Toledo City, Carcar City and Naga City (in Cebu).

Wednesday 16 October 2013

http://www.philstar.com/nation/2013/10/16/1245940/more-bodies-found-bohol-quake-death-toll-hits-151

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