A 7.8-magnitude quake struck the southern Philippine island of Mindanao on MondayBloombergJune 09, 2026HeadphonesBookmarkThe death toll from the strongest earthquake to hit the Philippines in five decades has increased to 37, an official said. Rescue operations are underway as families and businesses grapple with damage to properties.Office of Civil Defense Assistant Secretary Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro said around 487 people were injured and four were reported missing following the Monday morning earthquake.“Our search and rescue and rapid damage assessment are ongoing. These numbers can change,” he told local radio DZBB on Tuesday. “Many residential and commercial establishments collapsed.”Around 2,000 houses were affected, more than 400 of which were totally wrecked, Alejandro said, adding that 117 government facilities and around 20 bridges were damaged.A 7.8-magnitude quake struck the southern Philippine island of Mindanao on Monday, the most powerful to rock the Southeast Asian nation since 1976 and the strongest globally this year, according to US Geological Survey data.Philippine civil aviation authorities have limited operations at the General Santos airport to military, government and humanitarian flights, prompting carriers Cebu Air Inc. and Philippine Airlines Inc. to cancel dozens of flights through Thursday.The office of Vice President Sara Duterte, who hails from Mindanao, said on Tuesday that it has deployed a food truck to provide meals to disaster responders, adding it’s ready to augment ongoing relief and recovery efforts for communities affected by the quake.Her political rival, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., on Monday ordered relevant state agencies to act immediately, saying the national government “will not leave Mindanao behind.”The Philippines is located in the Pacific Ring of Fire, making the archipelago prone to frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Last year, more than 70 people died after a 6.9 magnitude earthquake rocked the central province of Cebu.Updated: June 09, 2026, 3:56 AMMost popular today12345678910