Bohol a symbol of resilience 12 years since killer quake
TAGBILARAN CITY—Church bells and sirens rang across Bohol on Wednesday morning as the province marked the 12th anniversary of the devastating magnitude 7.2 earthquake that killed more than 200 people and displaced over 300,000 residents.
At 8:12 a.m.—the time the quake struck on Oct. 15, 2013—the bells tolled and sirens wailed for 33 seconds, the duration of the ground shaking, as residents paused in silence to remember the lives lost.
The 2013 quake remains one of the most powerful to hit the country, toppling centuries-old churches, damaging ancestral homes and crippling Bohol’s tourism-driven economy.
According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, the disaster killed 222 people, injured 976 and left eight missing.
In a memorandum circular on Oct. 3, Gov. Erico Aristotle Aumentado urged local officials and government agencies to offer prayers for the victims.
Unbreakable spirit
He also coordinated with the dioceses of Tagbilaran and Talibon, as well as law enforcement agencies, for the simultaneous bell-ringing and siren-blaring across the province.
“We remember the tragedy that tested us, honor the resilience that carried us through, move forward with gratitude, and live each day with renewed hope,” Aumentado said.
Cebu Archbishop Alberto Uy said that amid the devastation, what stood out was the unbreakable spirit of faith that emerged from the ruins—a testament to the strength and compassion of the Boholano people.
“We witnessed the best of our people shining through the darkest of times,” he said in a Facebook post.
“The earthquake reminded us that even when the ground beneath us trembles, our faith in God must remain steadfast. The strongest foundations are not built of stone or steel, but of faith, compassion, and solidarity,” added Uy, the former bishop of Tagbilaran.
For many survivors, the day was a poignant reminder of loss.
In Antequera town, the Barace family visited the graves of loved ones who died in the quake.
“We will always remember them as long as we live,” Rodel Barace, a native basket entrepreneur who lost four family members, told the Inquirer. His parents, sister, and 5-year- old son died when the ground beneath their home cracked open.
Transformation
While the quake left deep scars, it also reshaped Bohol—literally and figuratively. The disaster gave rise to new geological features that have since become educational and tourism sites under the province’s geosciences tours.
One of the most remarkable is the so-called Great Wall of Bohol at Barangay Anonang in Inabanga town—a 6-kilometer-long ground rupture that rose up to 5 meters after the quake. Once a sloping farmland, the area now serves as a striking reminder of nature’s power and resilience.
The quake also caused the formation of over 1,300 sinkholes across the island, including the 18.28-meter (60-feet) deep Catigbian Karst Window.
Meanwhile, the coastal areas of Loon and Maribojoc rose by about 1.5 meters, exposing a 417-hectare stretch of former seabed now blanketed by colorful sea purslane. Locals call it the “Coral Garden,” a new ecotourism site.
Even Bohol’s iconic Chocolate Hills bore the scars of the earthquake, with some mounds split in half and the viewing deck in Carmen town destroyed. Alternative viewpoints like the Chocolate Hills Adventure Park and Sagbayan Peak later emerged to offer new vistas of the island’s rolling landscape.
In the years following the disaster, Bohol worked to revive its tourism industry through the Bohol Tourism Recovery Plan. The campaign repositioned the province as a destination of resilience, heritage, and discovery.
According to the Bohol Tourism Office, the island welcomed over a million visitors in both 2023 and 2024, buoyed by new domestic and international flights.
