CEBU (LiCAS News): The newly installed Archbishop Alberto Uy of Cebu expressed his closeness to the victims of the 6.9-magnitude earthquake that struck the central Philippines on September 30. He urged the Catholic faithful to pray “for calmness and strength in the midst of these trials.”
The magnitude 6.9 quake struck late Tuesday off the northern tip of Cebu Island near Bogo City, according to the US Geological Survey.
In a statement, Archbishop Uy said, “We entrust ourselves, our families, and our communities into His merciful hands. May the Lord shelter us under His wings, protect us from every harm, and guide us to safety and peace,”
He urged the faithful in affected parishes “to refrain from using your churches for the celebration of the Holy Mass until the proper experts have carried out the assessment and declared the structures safe for use.”
On October 1, Philippine officials confirmed nearly 60 fatalities as casualties continued to mount.
Earlier that day, before the earthquake struck, nearly 60 Catholic bishops were in Cebu City for the installation Mass of Archbishop Uy at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral, where he expressed his intention “to embrace that call in my life as shepherd” of the Catholic faithful in Cebu.
I heard a loud booming noise from the direction of the church, then I saw rocks falling from the structure. Luckily, no one got hurt
Pope Leo XIV extended his sympathies and prayers to those affected by the magnitude 6.9 earthquake that struck northern Cebu on Tuesday night, Archbishop Uy said on October 2. The message was conveyed through apostolic nuncio to the Philippines, Archbishop Charles John Brown.
“The Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines, Archbishop Charles John Brown, called me to convey the Holy Father’s heartfelt sympathies for all the survivors of the earthquake, and his prayers for the eternal repose of the victim,” Archbishop Uy said.
He added that the pope assured the faithful of his spiritual closeness as communities grieve and begin recovery efforts.
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The Office of Civil Defence said at least 53 deaths had been confirmed by Bogo hospital, 30 of them from Bogo City, with more than 150 people injured.
“We are receiving additional numbers of reported casualties, so this thing is very fluid,” said deputy administrator Rafaelito Alejandro in a report by AFP.
Damage extended across Cebu province. On Bantayan Island, the belfry of a centuries-old Catholic church collapsed after violently swaying.
“I heard a loud booming noise from the direction of the church, then I saw rocks falling from the structure. Luckily, no one got hurt,” said 25-year-old resident Martham Pacilan.
In Cebu City, 100 kilometres south, shoppers fled a mall when ceilings gave way. “It was as if the Earth stopped spinning. And then the mall started shaking,” recalled 21-year-old Jayford Maranga, who said his friend was slightly injured.
Authorities warned that more people could be trapped in collapsed structures and appealed for volunteer medics. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said the area had recorded 379 aftershocks.
Power lines snapped, roads cracked, and entire villages were left isolated. Tabogon town reported five centimetre fissures on its main road, while electricity was only restored after midnight across Cebu and four other central islands, the National Grid Corp. said.
