35 schools damaged by Abra earthquake; over 8K others affected — DepEd

Bolbolo National High School was not exempted from the damage wrought by the powerful magnitude 7 earthquake the struck Abra province and which was felt in most parts of northern Luzon, leaving severe infrastructure damage such as collapsed ceilings, broken florescent lamps and television and cracked walls. Image from Facebook / DepEd Tayo-Bolbolo NHS

MANILA, Philippines — A total of 35 schools sustained infrastructure damage after a strong 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Abra province and other parts of Luzon, the Department of Education (DepEd) reported on Thursday.

Of the 35, 11 were from Central Luzon, nine from Cagayan Valley, eight from Cordillera Administrative Region, and seven were from Ilocos Region, DepEd said.

A total of P228.5 million would be needed to reconstruct and rehabilitate the damaged schools.

Apart from the 35 damaged schools, around 8,027 schools were affected by the strong temblor.

READ: Magnitude 7 earthquake jolts Abra, other parts of Luzon

“The DepEd is one with the nation in praying for the safety and welfare of the Filipino people amidst the magnitude 7.0 earthquake in Abra,” the agency said in a statement.

DepEd added that it attended the first response cluster meeting and joined the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) virtual emergency operations center to further assess the situation of the affected regions due to the earthquake.

It has likewise called for an emergency meeting with the regional and division disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) coordinators of the affected regions to present updates and response actions undertaken by their office.

The strong earthquake hit northeast of Langilang, Abra, at 8:43 a.m. on Wednesday, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology reported.

Several structures and bridges reportedly collapsed in the town of Lagangilang in Abra.

So far, five persons were reportedly to have died due to the earthquake.

EDV