9 dead in Pampanga after Luzon earthquake
PAMPANGA, Philippines (4th UPDATE) – Nine people were killed in Porac and Lubao towns in this province as a magnitude 6.1 earthquake rocked parts of Luzon on Monday, April 22.
Quoting reports from the Pampanga Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO), Pampanga Governor Lilia Pineda said 5 people in Porac and Lubao died when their houses collapsed, while 3 bodies were retrieved from a grocery store that collapsed due to the earthquake.
Central Luzon police chief Joel Coronel said early Tuesday morning, April 23, that another body was retrieved from Chuzon Supermarket in Porac, bringing the death toll there to 4. The accident also left 7 people injured.
Coronel said that based on initial reports, some 30 people remain missing. Rescue operations are still ongoing as of Tuesday morning.
Right after the earthquake, power outages occurred all over the province, including Angeles City. As of 9 pm, Pineda said most of the towns in Pampanga have no power yet. In some areas in Mabalacat City, power was restored around 9 pm.
The Santa Catalina de Alexandria Parish Church in Porac sustained significant damage according to the Archdiocesan Committee on Church Heritage-Pampanga.
The following also suffered damage: the Metropolitan Cathedral of San Fernando, the Holy Rosary Parish Church in Angeles City, the Saint James the Apostle Church in Guagua town, the Santa Rita de Cascia Parish Church in Sta Rita town, and the Apung Mamacalulu Shrine in Angeles City.
The control tower and passenger terminal of the Clark International Airport were also damaged, prompting the suspension of operations.
As of this posting, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology has recorded 18 aftershocks around Angeles City, Olongapo City, and Castillejos, Zambales.
In Zambales, the PDRRMO said a 6-year-old boy from Barangay Buhawen, San Marcelino sustained a massive head injury due to falling rocks. No other casualties were reported in other municipalities as of this posting.
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