By NITZ ARANCON
Correspondent
and Mindanews
DAVAO del Sur—Rescuers yesterday found the bodies of a septuagenarian woman and a man who were buried in the rubble of a three-story department store that collapsed in Davao del Sur during the magnitude 6.9 earthquake that shook many areas in Mindanao on Sunday.
In another Davao del Sur village, a six-year-old girl died after being hit falling debris.
Authorities identified two of the three fatalities as 71-year-old Evangeline Artiaga and Cherbelchen Imgador, 6. The third victim, a male, has yet to be identified at press time.
A 31-year-old woman identified as Emily Beloy of Padada was declared missing.
Artiaga’s body was found by rescuers in the collapsed three-story building of South Green Trading in Padada at around 6 am yesterday.
Inside the collapsed building, they also found a dead man.
In Barangay Asinan, Matanao town, Davao del Sur, falling debris hit and killed the six-year-old Imgador.
Authorities recorded at least 21 people hurt in Padada alone as a result of the powerful earthquake that struck at around 2:15 pm Sunday.
The Padada list of the injured include Janneth Olores, Janice Oras, Marycris Malayang, Mark Joseph Tabanao, Ardy Quiro;
Eurica Bandula, Ryan Poda, Epipaña Serato, Juven Lacida, Alex Nor;
Jonathan Uzman, Jasson Pesino, Carlo Tablo, Vic Telen, Arjay Macarat, Victor Bayon;
Feliciano and Capiona Blanco, Jusua Albarelo, Leslie Gatos and Yan-yan Jomaoas.
They were rushed to the Digos City Provincial Hospital and some were transferred to a Davao City hospital.
Family members of Beloy, the missing woman, complained about what they called slow rescue operations.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) initially reported the epicenter at six kilometers northwest of Padada in Davao del Sur, with a depth of 30 kilometers but later amended it to kilometers northwest of Matanao, also in Davao del Sur, with a depth of three kilometers.
The intensities recorded by Phivolcs were “7” in Matanao and Magsaysay towns in Davao del Sur, “6” in Kidapawan City in North Cotabato, General Santos and Koronadal cities in South Cotabato, Bansalan in Davao del Sur, and Alabel and Malapatan in Sarangani.
The quake was felt at Intensity 5 in the cities of Davao and Cotabato, Tulunan and Matalam in North Cotabato, and Glan in Sarangani; Intensity 3 in Kalilangan, Talakag, and Dangcagan in Bukidnon; Intensity 2 in Impasug-ong, Bukidnon and the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Dipolog; and Intensity 1 in Zamboanga del Sur.
Data from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) showed that at least 315 structures in Davao del Sur alone were damaged by Sunday’s powerful earthquake.
Ricardo Jalad, NDRRMC executive director, said at least 179 aftershocks, of which 32 were plotted and 10 were felt, followed the temblor with an epicenter at six kilometers northwest of Matanao town.
Jalad released SitRep 01 at 8 pm Sunday, which stated that the quake destroyed the Southern Trade Shopping Center (South Green Trading) in Padada town.
Damaged structures included the police station and the Maria Cleta National High School in Padada, the barangay hall of Poblacion in Matanao, the police station and the Nadila Elementary School in Kiblawan, the municipal hall of Magsaysay, the municipal hall, Sangguniang Bayan building and the Hagonoy National High School in Hagonoy.
Jalad said the temblor also damaged at least 315 houses in Hagonoy town.
Sunday’s quake was the fifth with over Magnitude 6 strength to hit parts of Mindanao in the last two months.
An earthquake with magnitude 6.3 rattled portions of Mindanao on Oct. 16; magnitudes 6.6 and 6.1 on Oct. 29; and magnitude 6.5 on Oct. 31.
Hours after Sunday’s quake, Padada Vice Mayor Francisco Guerrero said rescuers had detected “signs of life” from one of the three people trapped at the collapsed shopping center.
Rescuers digging into the rubble of the three-story shopping store had received text messages from one of the trapped people, he noted.
“This trapped individual texted a friend, a rescuer, and told him he was still alive under that building,” Guerrero said.
Guerrero said rescuers had brought in a piece of backhoe equipment to dig into the rubble but was stymied by their lack of experience.
“Our rescuers do not have the training and are ill-equipped to deal with an emergency like this,” Guerrero said.
He said rescuers earlier rescued four people from the collapsed commercial building in front of the town market.
Engr. Luke Cadoyas, Padada town disaster risk reduction, and management officer appealed for assistance from neighboring towns and national government agencies.
He said another building, the two-story Canlas Commercial Building, also collapsed due to the quake.
In Kidapawan City, which registered Intensity 6, shoppers in one of the biggest malls scampered for safety and some ran towards the exit points.
The mall closed when everyone was out of the building.
The Gaisano Grand Mall of Kidapawan had just opened for business last month after the management completed the retrofitting of areas damaged by the series of four above-Magnitude 6 quakes between Oct. 16 and Oct. 31.
Shoppers said they heard and saw several broken glassware on the mall’s second floor.
Children were the most traumatized. Caryl Joy, a shopper, said, “I saw children crying, looking for their moms. Some of them were placed inside the playhouse while their parents were doing the grocery.”
Other Kidapawan grocery stores and restaurants were immediately closed for business after the ground shaking.
The powerful earthquake also caused destruction and damages in Davao City. A house, for instance, was destroyed in Purok 3, Barangay Lizada in Davao City, according to a report released by the City Information Office.
At least eight families were displaced and evacuated to the barangay gymnasium in Barangay Lizada.
The tremor also caused major damages to some bridges and commercial establishments in the city. The report said new cracks were found in the two condominium towers of Palmetto Place, a project of property developer DMC Urban Property Developers Inc. in Barangay Maa that was condemned following a magnitude 6.5 earthquake on Oct. 31.
It added that the Mahayahay Bridge on Diversion Road had been closed to motorists after some cracks were discovered following the tremor. Vehicles were re-routed to Matina Crossing going to McArthur Highway.
Building inspectors also found some cracks on the structures of the SM City in Ecoland; Queensland Hotel in Matina Aplaya; public market and Gaisano Grand in Barangay Tibungco; and major cracks on a pedestrian bridge at Center Point in Barangay Matina.
The Davao city government suspended classes yesterday.
In General Santos City, Mayor Ronnel Rivera also declared a suspension class in private and public schools in all levels until further notice to give way to inspections.
In Koronadal City, Mayor Eliordo Ogena suspended classes at all levels in both private and public schools but there was work in both public and private offices.
Ogena called on the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, City Engineer’s Office and city building officials to an emergency meeting to immediately conduct an inspection of buildings and to submit a report within 24 hours.
In Kidapawan City, Mayor Joseph Evangelista suspended classes in all schools as well as work in city hall on Monday. The quake registered Intensity 6 in Kidapawan. (Carolyn O. Arguillas, Antonio L. Colina IV, Malu Cadelina-Manar, Bong Sarmiento and Froilan Gallardo / Mindanews)
