Death toll rises to 8 in Philippines earthquake

The death toll from a magnitude 6.7 offshore earthquake in the southern Philippines rose to eight, the country's civil defence said on Sunday.

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The flag of the Philippines flutters on Philippine President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.'s aeroplane as he arrives at San Francisco International Airport to attend the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) Summit in San Francisco, California, U.S., November 14, 2023. REUTERS/Brittany Hosea-Small

The death toll from a magnitude 6.7 offshore earthquake in the southern Philippines rose to eight, the country’s civil defence said on Sunday.

Two people missing in a landslide after Friday’s quake, which struck deep off Mindanao island, were confirmed dead, the Office of Civil Defense said.

The latest deaths were from Sarangani province. Others were killed in South Cotabato and Davao Occidental province, while 13 people were injured from the tremor, which sent scores of people into panic and damaged more than 50 houses and other buildings.

Electricity has been restored and most roads were now passable, the agency said.

Earthquakes are frequent in the Philippines, lying in the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, which the U.S. Geological Survey describes as the “most seismically and volcanically active zone in the world”.

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