Solidum to quake victims: Observe social distancing in evacuation centers

Science and Technology Undersecretary and Phivolcs Officer-in-Charge Renato Solidum Jr. Senate PRIB file photo / Joseph Vidal

MANILA, Philippines — Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) director Renato Solidum said victims of the magnitude 6.6 earthquake that hit Masbate should not gather together inside evacuation centers as the ongoing threat of coronavirus disease continues.

“Dapat hindi dapat kumpol-kumpol as much as possible, by family lang muna at malayo sa ibang family upang hindi magkaroon ng transmission kung sakaling may virus na pagkakalat,” Solidum said in an online press briefing about the tremor that struck provinces in Bicol Region, in Visayas, and Quezon province on Tuesday morning.

(If they need to go to evacuation areas they should not gather together as much as possible. They must be divided by family as of the moment so that the virus would not transmit to other families inside the center.)

He also noted that residents should let authorities inspect the structure of their homes as aftershocks might cause their houses to collapse which may result in injuries.

“Aftershocks ay inaasahan at kailangan na yung mga bahay na may sira o damage ay ma-evacuate muna at magpa-inspect sa  engineer o sa building official upang matingnan kung pwede pang gamitin o hindi,” Solidum said.

(Aftershocks are expected so it is required for homes that have damage to evacuate and have engineers or building officials to check if the house is still stable.)

“Ang mga aftershocks ay posibleng malakas doon ang epicenter sa Cataingan (Masbate) at nearby towns at kahit hindi bumagsak ang bahay baka madagdagan ang tira sa bahay at tuluyang bumagsak so delikado po sa mga tao,” he added.

(Aftershocks are possibly strong at the epicenter at Cataingan and nearby towns and even if the house did not collapse, the condition might worsen which will eventually pose risk to the residents.)

Initial reports from state seismologists showed that the tremor was felt in Bicol provinces, in the Visayas and in Quezon province at 8:03 a.m. The earthquake was caused by the movement of the Philippine fault zone’s Masbate segment.

JPV