Southern Leyte’s magnitude 5.8 quake affects 452 families
TACLOBAN CITY—Government aid continued to be delivered to 452 families, composed of 1,726 people, who were affected by the magnitude 5.8 earthquake that hit San Francisco town on Panaon Island in Southern Leyte on Jan. 23.
Of the town’s 22 barangays, only three—Tinaan, Ubos and Central—did not sustain any damage from the earthquake, according to a report released by the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) on Monday.
The Office of Civil Defense in Eastern Visayas said it continued to distribute food and nonfood assistance to the affected families, in coordination with the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
Relief efforts included provisions for shelter and hygiene kits as well as food packs to displaced residents.
The MDRRMO report said that 15 families were still in evacuation centers in the town as of Monday.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said the earthquake’s epicenter was located 6 kilometers southeast of San Francisco at an estimated depth of 14 km and was associated with the movement of a local active fault in the area.
According to Phivolcs, “Southern Leyte and its neighboring provinces experience earthquakes as they are situated in one of the seismically active regions” in the country.
“The presence of onshore and offshore active faults, particularly the Philippine Fault and its segments, generates high seismicity in the area. Additionally, there are local faults nearby, some potentially buried by recent deposits and have the potential to cause minor to strong earthquakes,” it added.
Disrupted water supply
The quake destroyed 15 houses and damaged 437 others with structural issues, such as collapsed walls and ceilings.
Landslides were also reported in five barangays—Malico, Tuno, Bongawisan, Gabi and Sudmon.
Water transmission lines in Bongawisan, where the town’s water source was located, was also damaged, disrupting water supply across the municipality.
Roads and bridges in Barangays Sudmon, Habay, Santa Paz Norte and Gabi as well as a flood control dike in Gabi were affected, the MDRRMO said.
Visible cracks were observed in the Sangguniang Bayan (municipal council) building, municipal gym, municipal hall, and eight elementary and secondary schools.
A local church in Barangay Tuno and day care centers in Barangays Malico and Cuasi also sustained structural damage.
The municipal government last week declared a state of calamity to access its P7-million calamity fund.
But the MDRRMO had yet to provide the total damage caused by the quake in the town, which, according to a 2020 census, has a population of 13,346.
Servando Teo, municipal council secretary, said the calamity status allowed the municipal government to use its calamity fund. “But of course, we cannot use the entire amount of our current calamity fund considering that we are still in the first quarter of the year,” he added.
