At least 15 people were killed after a powerful 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck the southern Philippines on Monday, causing widespread destruction, collapsing buildings, and prompting tsunami warnings across parts of the Pacific region.
The offshore quake struck south of General Santos City, a major urban centre with a population of about 720,000, prompting authorities to order residents in coastal communities to move to higher ground as a precaution against possible tsunami waves.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported a series of strong aftershocks following the initial quake, including one measuring magnitude 6.5.
Images and videos circulating on social media showed extensive damage in affected areas. Footage verified by AFP captured a shopping complex housing a Jollibee fast-food outlet reduced to rubble in General Santos City, while a school building collapsed in a separate incident.
Officials said the school structure was unoccupied at the time of the collapse, preventing further casualties.
Other videos showed terrified pupils being held by teachers as the earthquake violently shook the area. A nearby metal structure was seen collapsing, though authorities said no one was trapped beneath it.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued alerts warning of possible tsunami waves along the coastlines of the Philippines, Indonesia, Palau, Taiwan, and Papua New Guinea.
By mid-afternoon, authorities had confirmed at least 15 deaths, including 12 in the Soccsksargen region of Mindanao, where General Santos City is located. Three additional fatalities were reported in Davao Occidental province.
The official death toll did not include two people reportedly killed in Alabel, a municipality near General Santos, where a wall collapsed during the quake.
Police Major Roland Catoburan said the victims were crushed by falling debris, adding that several police stations sustained structural damage, forcing officers to remain outside the affected buildings.
In response to the disaster, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered the suspension of classes across Mindanao on what was scheduled to be the first day of the academic term.
The president also urged residents in vulnerable coastal communities to evacuate immediately and move to safer locations.
Authorities reported that tens of thousands of residents complied with evacuation directives. In Kiamba, a coastal town near the epicentre, regional disaster officials said approximately 80 percent of the population had relocated to higher ground.
The earthquake also prompted precautionary evacuation warnings in parts of neighbouring Indonesia and Malaysia, although Indonesian authorities later lifted their tsunami alert.
Japan issued tsunami advisories for sections of its Pacific coastline, but officials reported that waves reaching the country measured no more than 20 centimetres.
The Philippines is located along the Pacific Ring of Fire, one of the world’s most seismically active regions, making earthquakes a frequent occurrence.
The latest disaster follows a series of major earthquakes that have struck the country in recent years, including twin tremors measuring 7.4 and 6.7 magnitude in eastern Mindanao last October and a magnitude 6.9 earthquake that killed dozens and damaged tens of thousands of buildings in central Philippines.
