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A laborer walks near a destroyed structure after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit General Santos in southern Philippines on June 8, 2026. — Reuters
– A young mother delivered her baby outside the hospital.
– Damage to roads and bridges has isolated several communities.
– Tsunami warnings were lifted after the threat subsided.
Doctors treated patients in tents under the intense Philippine sun on Tuesday, including assisting a young mother with childbirth. The death toll from the powerful earthquake, which caused building collapses and triggered tsunami alerts, surpassed 40.
Thousands remain displaced, and over 450 people are injured following the magnitude-7.8 quake that struck off Mindanao on Monday. Based on reports from national and local disaster agencies, only four individuals are now missing.
In Sarangani Province, one of the hardest-hit areas, some regions are only accessible via helicopter. Rescue efforts are slowed by ongoing aftershocks, according to local officials briefing reporters Tuesday.
“There are still aftershocks, so rescue teams are proceeding with caution. That’s a challenge,” said Rodrigo Sosmena, regional civil defense chief.
Multiple strong aftershocks rattled the region within hours of the initial quake, along with hundreds of smaller tremors.
Structural damage means some communities will be cut off for at least a week due to destroyed roads and a collapsed bridge.
At a hospital near General Santos— the largest city in the region— AFP journalists heard a woman cry out “push” followed by the newborn’s cries outdoors, behind a makeshift screen, as she delivered her baby.
In Glan municipality, where at least 13 residents were buried inside landslide-affected homes, staff at another hospital reported more than 60 patients were placed on beds outside the facility because of safety concerns about the building’s stability.
“The hospital sustained extensive damage,” said a hospital staff member. “The municipal engineer decided it’s unsafe to keep using the building.”
By Tuesday morning, provincial sources reported the death toll had reached 41.
Rescue teams resumed efforts outside a collapsed grocery store in General Santos after an overnight pause, attempting to recover two workers trapped inside when the building fell.
AFP cameras watched as search dogs and handlers combed through heaps of broken concrete and jagged metal.
A rescue official indicated the focus had shifted from rescue to recovery, though this had not been officially confirmed.
At a nearby beach resort, a Coast Guard vessel searched for two missing swimmers caught in turbulent waters caused by the quake.
Social media videos verified by AFP showed the collapse of a shopping mall housing a Jollibee restaurant and the destruction of an unoccupied school building in General Santos.
Another video depicted school children screaming as they were held by teachers during the tremor, with a background shot of a collapsing metal structure. The school’s official Facebook page stated no one was underneath the structure when it fell.
Thousands of people in coastal areas of the southern Philippines and neighboring Indonesia were ordered to evacuate, as multiple countries and the regional tsunami center issued warnings. However, by midday, the threat had passed, and alerts were canceled.
Waves that did reach Japan’s Pacific coast, where a tsunami advisory was issued, measured no more than 8 inches (about 20 centimeters).
In October, eastern Mindanao experienced two earthquakes of magnitudes 7.4 and 6.7, which caused at least eight deaths.
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