AFTERMATH. Portions of the concrete wall collapse from the second floor of the Marbel Evangelical Church Ministry, Inc. on Langka Street, Purok Bagong Sikat, Barangay General Paulino Santos in Koronadal City during the magnitude 6.6 quake on Tuesday morning (Oct. 29, 2019). Church member Nestor Narciso, 67, was killed after being hit by concrete debris. (PNA photo by Allen V. Estabillo)
GENERAL SANTOS CITY -- The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) 12 (Soccsksargen) on Tuesday assured assistance for victims of the magnitude 6.6 earthquake that rocked the area and other parts of Mindanao.
Cezario Joel Espejo, DSWD-12 director, said they mobilized their quick response team to determine the extent of the destruction caused by the quake and the affected families within the region.
As of 2 p.m., one fatality was recorded while dozens were reported injured in Soccsksargen due to the quake, with the epicenter traced anew in Tulunan town, North Cotabato.
A retired government employee identified as Nestor Narciso, 67, was killed after being hit by portions of a concrete wall of their church that collapsed during the quake.
The victim was working at the ground level of the Marbel Evangelical Christian Ministries, Inc. (Mecmi) on Langka Street, Purok Bagong Sikat in Barangay General Paulino Santos when he was hit on the head by concrete debris that fell from the unfinished wall on the second floor.
The victim was a member of Mecmi, an affiliate of the Christian and Missionary Alliance Churches of the Philippines, and had volunteered to help with some construction and carpentry works at the church.
Espejo offered sympathies and prayers to the family of Narciso, who was a retired employee of the provincial government of South Cotabato and assigned as driver of the provincial hospital’s ambulance.
He said the agency would provide burial assistance to the victim’s family.
“I would like to express our condolences to the bereaved family. Our staff will coordinate with them for the needed assistance,” he said in a statement.
Bonifacio Selma, DSWD-12 assistant director for operation, said teams deployed minutes after the tremor were still on the ground conducting assessment on the effects of the quake.
Initial information relayed by the Office of Civil Defense 12 said some 30 individuals were reported injured in Kidapawan City and 13 others in M'lang, North Cotabato.
Rolly Doane Aquino, operations and warning head of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office of South Cotabato, said several injured victims were brought to various hospitals as a result of the quake, which was felt at Intensity VI in the area.
He said a number of employees of the KCC Mall of Koronadal City and students of the Koronadal National Comprehensive High School were also rushed to local hospitals after suffering from hyperventilation.
In this city, a small fire erupted in an establishment along the Pioneer’s Avenue after the quake but was quickly put out by responding firefighters from the Bureau of Fire Protection - General Santos fire station. (PNA)
