At least 26 other people were injured in a magnitude 6. 4 earthquake that struck the northern Philippines, forcing the closure of a foreign airport, sending terrified citizens onto the streets and causing severe damage to a hospital.
The quake, which struck around 10:59 p. m. on Tuesday (14:59 GMT) near the mountain city of Dolores, was felt as far away as the capital Manila, more than 330 kilometers (205 miles) to the south.
Police and civil aviation officials said at least 26 other people were injured in Ilocos Norte, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ‘s home province, where the foreign airport in the capital, Laoag, ordered temporary closure Wednesday due to damage caused by the quake.
The president, also known as Bongbong, warned against aftershocks on Wednesday and called on others in a tweet to stay away from tall structures.
Everyone should stay away from tall structures.
Agridam ken agananadtayo, kakailien. Umaykamin un tumulong. https://t. co/akf8YkJOcW
— Bongbong Marcos (@bongbongmarcos) October 26, 2022
The patients were evacuated from the 200-bed Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital in the city of Batac, about 37 miles (60 km) north of the epicenter, which suffered some of the worst damage on record.
At least two in Cagayan province temporarily lost strength due to broken lines of force. Several bridges and roads were broken in outlying provinces.
In the city of La Paz in Abra, a century-old Christian church was damaged, parts of its bell tower collapsed and some walls cracked, filling the church’s grassy courtyard with debris, authorities said.
– USGS earthquakes (@USGS_Quakes) October 25, 2022
Dolores City Police Officer Jeffrey Blanes said “the buildings were shaking, so other people ran away. “
A citizen of the municipality of Aparri, located more than a hundred kilometers (62 miles) from the epicenter, posted on the website of the Euro-Mediterranean Seismological Center (EMSC) that it was the largest tremor he had experienced.
“The longest earthquake I’ve ever felt. Thank God we are Array Stay all,” the message reads.
– EMSC (@LastQuake) October 25, 2022
Photos of collapsed ceilings in some hospital rooms were posted on the local fire department’s official Facebook page as dozens of patients waited in chairs in the driveway.
“The government forced us to abandon construction while they checked the integrity of the construction. . . Lately we are conducting a damage assessment,” Tom Tabije, a hospital worker, told AFP news firm by telephone.
Civil protection in Abra province, where Dolores is located, said there were no quick reports of casualties, but the extent of the damage would not be known until the morning.
“We can’t do a thorough assessment of the effect now because it’s dark and we’re also thinking about protecting our people,” Abra rescue worker Joel de Leon told AFP by telephone.
Eleven other people were killed and several hundred injured in July when a magnitude 7. 0 earthquake struck the mountainous province of Abra, triggering landslides and cracks in the ground. In October 2013, a magnitude 7. 1 earthquake struck the central island of Bohol, killing more than two hundred other people.
Earthquakes occur in the Philippines, which lies along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an arc of intense seismic and volcanic activity stretching from Japan to Southeast Asia and along the Pacific basin.