Opinion: Guihulngan Hit Hardest by Negros Occidental Quake
Bacolodnons yesterday shook and swayed with the 6.9 quake that scared Negros
Later, about 30 minutes, there was an aftershock. The intensity was not reported by Phivolcs. But the aftershock was strong enough to send construction workers of a building near the NEDF office to storm out of the building they were working on. I personally saw them congregating in front of the building with its swaying construction materials.
The education department suspended classes in private and public schools of all levels in the entire province. So did City Mayor Evelio Leonardia who also had classes stopped in schools of the city. He also sent home city employees except for the essential crew of city hall.
SM Mall reportedly sent out its employees and the personnel of stores inside the mall following reports of cracks seen in the structure. This will be inspected to determine whether it is still safe for shoppers and the sales personnel of the many stores and malls.
The same also with the Gaisano Mall along Araneta street. There, onlookers also thronged the area to look for cracks in the mall.
In San Carlos City, residents of the coastal area in the Northern Negros City moved to higher grounds after city officials warned them of the tsunami level 2 warning according to Lt. Col. Oscar Lactao, 331st Infantry Brigade Commander.
Two big business structures of the city reportedly also showed cracks.
In Moises Padilla, a classroom in Brgy. Quintin Remo reportedly collapsed. Classes resume today with six classrooms still intact, according to the school principal. In Himamaylan City, another building also showed signs of cracks. But in Kabankalan City, police chief Mabugat belied reports by rumor mongers that several residents were hurt following the collapse of several buildings. He also warned rumor mongers not to resort to peddling such kind of false rumors.
But the more saddening stories that came out of Oriental Negros was the report a Cebu businessman who claimed that a bridge connecting San Carlos City and Guihulngan had been severed in several places. But that stranded several heavy trucks and buses. He told Aksyon Radyo that only smaller vehicles could cross the Guihulngan River.
Later, this was confirmed by a local lady. She reported that the Guihulngan public market had collapsed. So with the town hall and the police station. She also reported that there were several injured persons who had to be rushed to Dumaguete. The district hospital of Guihulngan could not be reached because the bridge to its approach had also been cut and rendered impassable.
She also reported that Poblacion residents had evacuated to the nearby group of
several barangays.
“It is still quaking,” she muttered as she was being interviewed by Aksyon Radyo,
Undersecretary Benito Ramos of the Risk Reduction Management Office said, the
quake was of tectonic origin and was 10 kilometers down between Cebu and Negros
Islands.
Later, he also announced the lifting of the level II tsunami warning. Although
as such, alert level II warning only urges residents to be on watch for a
possible rise in the waters off the sea. But that was more than enough to send
Guihulngan residents scampering for safety in the high grounds of neighboring
barangays.*
