TACLOBAN CITY -- Kananga town has been placed under a state of calamity, as it sustained heavy damage after the magnitude 6.5 magnitude earthquake hit Leyte Thursday afternoon.
Kananga Mayor Rowena Codilla made the declaration at 10 a.m. Friday, July 7, said Judith Meriam Fontanoza, Municipal Environment and Natural Resources officer.
The local government has P2.7 million in calamity funds, which could be used to help the quake victims, said Vice Mayor Elmer Codilla.
Initial reports said one person died and 37 others were injured after a three-story building in the town collapsed.
In Ormoc City, the incident command center reported a total of 150 injured persons and one dead as of 8 a.m. Friday. The fatality was identified as Rhissa Rosales, 19.
The command center said 122 have been confined in hospitals.
Several villages in Ormoc are also inaccessible due to rockslides and cracked roads.
The damage caused by the strong tremor is still being assessed as of Friday morning. (PNA/SunStar Philippines)