A POWERFUL earthquake on Tuesday night jolted Cebu, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said.

The tremor was initially recorded at magnitude 6.7 but was later upgraded to magnitude 6.9

It was tectonic in origin, with a depth of five kilometers, and recorded about 21 kilometers northeast of Bogo City.

The 9:59 p.m. earthquake killed at least 20 people, including 13 from Bogo City, and five from Sam Remegio town, and injured over three dozen others.

A local radio reported that among the fatalities were three coast guard personnel, a firefighter, and a child. Four were pulled from a sports center in San Remigio, while a 10-year boy was crushed by debris in another area of the municipality.

 “They were playing basketball inside the sports complex then it collapsed,” Police Capt. Jan Ace Elcid Layug, officer-in-charge of the San Remigio Police Station, said referring to the coast guard personnel and a firefighter.

The quake sent residents scrambling out of their homes as numerous villagers were injured while roads, homes and a fire station were damaged. 

The tremor also caused power lines to trip, leading to outages across Cebu and nearby central islands, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) said in an advisory, adding it was still assessing the extent of the damage.

The old Archdiocesan Shrine of Santa Rosa de Lima in the town of Daanbantayan, Cebu, collapsed into a pile of rubble following the quake. 

Shrine authorities on its Facebook page announced the cancellation of Masses until further notice.

Other churches in Bantayan Island and Tabuelan were also reported to have incurred damages.

The Archdiocese of Cebu said that churches gravely affected by the strong tremor should not be used to celebrate Masses until they had been inspected.

The Cebu provincial government said a commercial building and a school in Bantayan collapsed while a fast food restaurant in Bogo City was heavily damaged.

Cebu Gov. “Pamela Baricuatro said they are still assessing the quake damage.

Officials in San Remigio said on Facebook that they are planning to declare a state of calamity to help them mobilize resources for those affected y the earthquake.

Authorities announced that schools and government buildings in Cebu would be closed on Wednesday (October 1, 2025) to allow for damage inspections.

Meanwhile, Phivolcs also reported that the quake was felt at the following intensities in the following areas: Intensity V in Argao, Cebu; Sipalay City, Negros Occidental; Lapu-Lapu City and Tacloban City; intensity 4 in San Fernando, Cebu; Bulan, Bulusan; Casiguran, Sorsogon; Roxas City, Capiz; Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental; Ubay, Bohol; Lawaan, Eastern Samar; Laoang, Northern Samar; Catbalogan City, Samar; and Dipolog Cty, Zamboanga del Norte.

Intensity 3 was recorded in Legazpi City, Albay; Iriga City in Camarines Sr; Donsol, Sorsogon and Tibiao in Antique.

Phivolcs said aftershocks are expected.