In the rubble of a collapsed budget hotel in Bogo, Philippines, Isagani Gelig faced his worst nightmare. Firefighters pulled out the body of his 4-year-old son, John, in a black bag after a powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck Cebu province. Gelig knelt down, gently touching the bag, hoping to feel his child’s presence one last time.
Moments later, rescuers carried out another bag holding Gelig’s wife, the hotel’s night receptionist. She had been caring for their son while working. A rescuer handed Gelig her cellphone, and he nodded—it was hers. The family had called desperately after the quake hit Tuesday night, but she never answered. Gelig searched the debris, shouting their names, until he found them together under the first-floor ruins.
The earthquake’s toll keeps climbing. Officials report at least 72 people dead and nearly 300 injured in Bogo and nearby areas. No more missing persons have turned up so far, but over 170,000 residents face the aftermath. Many won’t return home, shaken by the trauma and worried about aftershocks.
Damage stretches across this coastal city of about 90,000 and surrounding towns. The quake wrecked or hurt 87 buildings and almost 600 houses. Bridges cracked, concrete roads buckled, and Bogo’s seaport tumbled down. Seismologists say the shake came from a shallow undersea fault line that hadn’t stirred in at least 400 years, hitting around 10 p.m.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. rushed to Bogo on Thursday to survey the destruction, deliver aid, and comfort grieving families. It’s a tough week for the central Philippines— just days earlier, a fierce storm killed 37 people and battered over half a million, including in Cebu.
Global support pours in too. The United States, a key ally, pledged help after the Cebu earthquake. China and Japan sent condolences, with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba telling Marcos, “Japan always stands with the Philippines in tough times.”
The Philippines sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a hotspot for earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and about 20 typhoons a year. Disasters like this test the nation’s resilience, from government teams to volunteers.
Heartbreaking stories emerge from the chaos. Red Cross volunteer Ian Ho, 49, didn’t answer calls after the quake. Rescuers found his crumbled house with him buried inside, shielding his 14-year-old son. The teen survived with injuries, but Ho didn’t. “He chose to protect his son,” said Red Cross Secretary-General Gwendolyn Pang. “He’s the kind of hero who saves others instinctively—even in his final moments.”
In nearby San Remigio, driver Bryan Sinangote, 49, was at a quiet basketball game when the ground heaved. The crowd froze, then bolted as the shaking intensified. The gymnasium ceiling caved in, killing three Coast Guard members and a firefighter. Sinangote tried to roll away but got partially trapped. Coast Guard rescuers freed him, and he got treatment for cuts on his face and arm.
This isn’t Sinangote’s first close call. He survived Typhoon Haiyan in 2013, one of the strongest storms ever, which killed over 7,300 in the central Philippines, flattened villages, and wrecked his home. “It’s devastating to see Bogo like this,” he said. “But Filipinos learn to live with calamities. After Haiyan, I rebuilt in a year. We stay ready for whatever comes.”
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