Race Against Time: Rescue Crews Dig Through Rubble After 7.8M Philippines Quake

A desperate search and rescue operation is underway in the southern Philippines after a massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck the island of Mindanao. The powerful tremor, which hit just 13 kilometers southwest of General Santos City, has killed at least 37 people and injured over 200 others.

As the 24-hour mark passes, the military has been deployed to aid emergency workers racing against time to pull survivors from collapsed buildings, including a severely damaged supermarket and shopping mall. While miraculous escapes were reported—such as employees and patrons managing to flee a local fast-food restaurant just moments before it flattened—authorities fear the casualty toll could still rise as teams clear structural debris. The crisis is heavily compounded by an unforgiving wave of hundreds of aftershocks, some reaching severe magnitudes between 5 and 7. The continuous shaking has forced more than 12,000 residents into frantic evacuations, crowded camps, and temporary shelters. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered an immediate federal disaster response and suspended classes across the region, where initial assessments reveal nearly 2,000 homes have been structurally compromised and over 6,000 schools affected. Al Jazeera's Barnaby Lo reports from Manila on the widespread structural devastation and the logistical gridlock facing first responders.

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