A STRONG 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit Northern Luzon with its epicenter at the province of Abra on Wednesday, July 27, 2022, that also caused substantial property damage, at least 4 casualties and several injuries, according to official reports.
The quake, whose strength was even felt in Metro Manila and other parts of Luzon, forced the suspension of work in several government and private offices.
The following day, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., immediately boarded a helicopter and flew to Abra and nearby areas to personally see and assess the extent of the earthquake’s damage.
But ahead of the President’s arrival, Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) secretary Erwin Tulfo and his team are already on the ground in order to assure timely government assistance to the victims.
The month of July is particularly worrisome to the residents of Luzon as it appears to be a month of unusually strong earthquakes.
It can be recalled that on July 16, 1990, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake also struck North-Central Luzon with its epicenter in Rizal, Nueva Ecija. The effect however, was felt not only in Metro Manila but also in Baguio City where the Hyatt Terraces Hotel also collapsed while casualties were recorded at 1,621 killed.
The 1990 earthquake is also believed as one of the factors that triggered the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo about one year later, on June 15, 1991. The eruption was considered as the second most violent volcano eruption of the 20th century, after the eruption of Mt. Novarupta in Alaska in 1912.