A powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck central Philippines late Tuesday, killing at least 69 people and injuring many more, with the epicenter near Bogo City in northern Cebu. Hospitals have been overwhelmed, power and water are disrupted, and rescuers are contending with buckled roads and repeated aftershocks.
Cebu Province declared a state of calamity on Wednesday to accelerate aid as officials warned the death toll could still rise.
Cebu is widely called “the cradle of Christianity in the Philippines” — even St. John Paul II used that phrase during his 1981 Mass in Cebu. The province is home to centuries-old churches and a lively devotion to the Santo Niño.
Out of caution, the Archdiocese of Cebu has asked communities in the hardest-hit northern towns not to use church buildings for Mass until engineers complete safety inspections.
Newly installed Archbishop Alberto Uy also offered condolences and urged the faithful to support relief efforts, with many parishes moving liturgies outdoors in plazas and courtyards. Local media documented damage at heritage sites, including the Archdiocesan Shrine of Santa Rosa de Lima in Daanbantayan, as the archbishop visited quake-hit communities.
Scenes from Bogo and nearby municipalities show tent hospitals, crowded evacuation areas, and families spending the night in the open. Officials report casualties from collapsing buildings and a sports venue in San Remigio, while landslides and fallen debris complicate access for ambulances.
The pattern is tragically familiar in a country sitting on the Pacific “Ring of Fire” and recovering from recent typhoons. Still, the response has been swift: search-and-rescue teams, power restoration crews, and convoys bringing drinking water and food to cut-off barangays.
Works of mercy
For Catholics and all people of goodwill, the most important work now is close at hand. The Catechism names the “works of mercy” — feeding the hungry, caring for the sick, burying the dead (CCC 2447) — and we see them carried out in real time: neighbors sharing meals and phone chargers, parish volunteers organizing relief drop-offs, and communities praying for the dead and the living.
If you’re far from Cebu, you can still help: Pray for those who have died and those who grieve, and, if you’re able, give through reputable relief organizations with a track record in the Philippines.
