35 Killed in Deadly Philippines Earthquake
Your Daily Update for June 9, 2026. Plus: At least 35 people are dead and over 200 others remain injured after a deadly, 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck the Philippines yesterday.
The epicenter of the quake was detected around 20 miles southwest of the town of Maasim, located on the southwestern point of the Philippines’ second-largest island of Mindanao. Due to its relatively shallow depth – just 20 miles into the crust of the Earth – the quake delivered widespread damage across the region.
Mindanao, the Philippines’ southernmost and second-most populated island, has long struggled with issues like drug trafficking and corruption. The island is widely considered as one of the most unsafe islands in the archipelago, particularly due to its high levels of crime, terrorism, and civil unrest. Initiatives launched by former President Rodrigo Duterte from 2016-2022 largely targeted these groups in Mindanao, but his methods proved to be incredibly brutal.
Duterte described drug users as “subhuman” and “vermin” and allowed police officers to execute victims without due process. Authorities were widely involved in the falsification of evidence, and many of those accused suffered from the planting drugs or weapons on their bodies or in their homes to justify Duterte’s actions. Children were left orphaned without parents or family members to support them, and many communities were ripped apart by his ruthless tactics. As a whole, estimates place the death toll of Duterte’s war on drugs to be somewhere between 7,000 and 30,000 people.
These factors, along with the Philippines’ general geographical location, largely affect the island’s economic status to this day. However, some of the most destructive events that locals suffer from are not political, but natural.
The Philippines is one of the most cyclone-prone nations in the world – more than 20 cyclones pass through the nation’s general area every year, with around 8-9 of those storms making landfall. Unfortunately, as climate change becomes more and more severe, these cyclones are increasing in both intensity and frequency, spelling even more danger for the island nation.
Meanwhile, due to the archipelago’s location along the Pacific Ring of Fire – a chain of tectonic plate boundaries that have highly elevated levels of volcanic eruptions and earthquakes – the Philippines experiences more than 20 minor earthquakes every day. This translates to around 100-150 prominent quakes annually, along with multiple major seismic events per year.
Yesterday’s quake served as one of the latter, with a magnitude of 7.8 on the Richter scale. In addition to at least 35 fatalities, over 200 people were injured in the quake, and a 3-foot tsunami crashed onto local beaches just minutes afterwards. A large portion of the deaths were caused by a devastating landslide in the municipality of Glan, while dozens of others were killed due to building collapses.
Tsunami warnings were also issued across the Pacific, with significant waves reaching Indonesia, Palau, Taiwan, Papua New Guinea, and Japan. However, no damage was reported, and the warnings were later lifted after the threat subsided.
Several aftershocks have been reported, though, most notably those between 5.0 and 5.7 in magnitude. Officials have warned residents to avoid returning to their homes and businesses for some time, as post-quake aftershocks could last for days and continue to inflict damage upon local communities.
Fact of the Day (The Fact Site): California law does not allow or prohibit lane splitting – when motorcycles pass other vehicles within the same lane.
Quote of the Day (Gracious Quotes): Love is the strongest force the world possesses and yet it is the humblest imaginable. (Mahatma Gandhi)
Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster): Accoutrement (noun, uh-KOO-truh-munt) - An accoutrement is a piece of clothing or equipment that is used in a particular place or for a particular activity. In military contexts, accoutrement refers specifically to a soldier’s outfit. The word can also refer to an identifying and often superficial characteristic or device. Accoutrement in any of its uses is often pluralized.
In a Sentence: They have all the accoutrements that a baker could ever want, including a robust collection of cookie cutters and a veritable wardrobe of vintage aprons.
Photo courtesy of the Philippine Information Agency Region XII