TACLOBAN CITY — Successive earthquakes over the past few days have shaken Eastern Visayas, disrupting classes, office work, and public activities as residents remain on alert for possible aftershocks.

On Friday, October 10, a magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck off the coast of Manay, Mindanao at around 9:43 a.m. sent strong tremors across Eastern Visayas, prompting precautionary evacuations in coastal areas and widespread class and work suspensions.

According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), the tremor was tectonic in origin and was felt across several provinces in the Visayas, including Leyte, Samar, and Eastern Samar. A tsunami advisory was issued for coastal communities in Leyte, Eastern Samar, and Southern Leyte, urging residents to move to higher ground.

In Dulag, Leyte, and Maydolong, Eastern Samar, local officials advised fishermen not to venture to sea, while Southern Leyte Governor Damian Mercado directed residents in coastal villages to evacuate inland.

Classes and government work were suspended in several towns and cities, including Guiuan, San Julian, and San Policarpo in Eastern Samar, and Ormoc City, Baybay City, Palo, Hilongos, Villaba, and Carigara in Leyte.

In Tacloban City, the tremor triggered brief panic as office workers, shoppers, and patients in hospitals rushed outdoors for safety. Several hospitals and schools, including the University of the Philippines Tacloban campus, temporarily halted operations to allow for safety inspections.

A major shopping mall in the city also closed temporarily to check for structural damage.
The Eastern Samar Electric Cooperative (Esamelco) shut down one of its substations affecting Llorente, Balangkayan, Maydolong, San Julian, and Borongan City, before later restoring power after confirming no major damage.

Meanwhile, in Leyte, Leyte, the opening ceremony of a school sports competition was interrupted when the quake struck, causing panic among students and teachers. In Catbalogan City, Samar, the distribution of cash assistance for Typhoon “Opong” victims was briefly halted but resumed once safety was assured.

Just three days later, on Monday, October 13, another quake jolted the region — this time a magnitude 6.0 tremor with an epicenter in Bogo City, Cebu, the same area that produced a magnitude 6.9 quake on September 30.

Phivolcs reported the quake at 1:06 a.m. with a shallow depth of 10 kilometers, and intensities recorded across Eastern Visayas as follows: Intensity V – Villaba, Leyte; Intensity IV – Ormoc City, Albuera, Capoocan, Calubian, Isabel, Kananga, Merida, Palompon, and San Isidro, all in Leyte; Intensity III – Tacloban City, Baybay City, and the towns of Abuyog, Burauen, Carigara, Dulag, Inopacan, Hilongos, Javier, MacArthur, Mahaplag, Palo, Tanauan, and Tolosa in Leyte; Hinunangan, Hinundayan, Silago, and Sogod in Southern Leyte; Rosario in Northern Samar; Intensity II – Maasin City, Malitbog, Padre Burgos, and San Francisco in Southern Leyte; Borongan City and Sulat in Eastern Samar; and Intensity I – Quinapondan, Eastern Samar, and Padre Burgos, Southern Leyte
The early morning quake roused many residents from sleep.

“I had to run out of the house after being awakened by the shaking that lasted for several seconds,” said Minchie de Paz of Tacloban City.

Local government units in Albuera, Mahaplag, Baybay City, and Ormoc City suspended classes from elementary to college levels to allow for building inspections. A Catholic school in Tacloban also cancelled classes and all related activities, while the Eastern Samar State University in Borongan City suspended classes to assess the structural integrity of its facilities.

No major damage or casualties have been reported from either tremor, but local officials urged residents to remain vigilant as aftershocks continue to be felt across the region.

(JOEY A. GABIETA)

MANILA, Philippines– GCash, the Philippines’ leading finance super app with the largest cashless ecosystem, announced the official launch of the GCash Pera Outlet Plus. Designed to economically empower Nano, Micro and Small (NMS) businesses, such as sari-sari stores, carinderias, and other community-based retail shops, by becoming a local hub for daily digital financial transactions, such as cash-in, cash-out, load purchase, and bills payment in their communities.

The new GCash Pera Outlet Plus is a separate and dedicated merchant app, currently available for Android mobile devices, that offers a wide range of digital financial services, with simple and powerful tools that enables community-based retail stores to earn additional income and help grow their businesses.

Store owners can unlock income streams and higher earning potential that can augment revenues to their existing business by earning commissions from everyday GCash financial services. Unlike a standard consumer e-wallet, the GCash Pera Outlet Plus wallet is designed for high-volume community transactions, offering higher wallet limits and a separate account history for better transaction tracking and management.

To help GCash Per Outlet Plus partner stores succeed, GCash offers a range of support including, but not limited to, free store merchandising set-up, exclusive merchant promotions and helpful digital tools such as “My Suki” to save customer details and avoid mistakes in keying-in numbers, frontliner delegation features to allow a store front personnel to run the business while owners are away, and a very simple business onboarding process.

With thousands of registered outlets nationwide, GCash Pera Outlet Plus plays a vital role in the country’s digital transformation and in bridging the financial gap, as it paves the way to digitalization at the grassroots community level through NMS businesses.

“At GCash, we believe that empowering community-based retails shops is key to building a more inclusive and resilient economy,” said RenRen Reyes, CEO of G-Xchange, Inc. “With the new GCash Pera Outlet Plus, we’re giving nano,micro and small entrepreneurs the tools to help grow their businesses further, serve their communities, and contribute to national development. This is a commitment to uplift local livelihoods and drive economic progress from the ground up.”

The GCash Pera Outlet Plus features help ensure that NMS businesses—have the digital tools to adapt, thrive, earn, and lead. This initiative is a core reflection of GCash’s commitment to inclusive innovation in line with its vision of providing “Finance for All”. This vision centers on accelerating financial inclusion by providing accessible and meaningful digital finance solutions to empower all Filipinos, especially those who are unbanked or underserved by traditional financial institutions.

By expanding digital financial services to the furthest reaches of the country, the initiative directly supports the Philippine Government’s digitalization agenda for local and national economic development. (PR)

On October 9, 2025, a remarkable testament to partnership and shared compassion unfolded in the skies. A Philippine Air Force (PAF) C-130 and a Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) C-130 successfully conducted a Low-Cost, Low-Altitude (LCLA) cargo airdrop under the PAF–JASDF Doshin-Bayanihan 5-25 Exercise, a mission that embodied the true essence of its name: “Doshin,” a Japanese word which means unity of heart, and “Bayanihan,” the Filipino spirit of communal cooperation and selfless service.

In this powerful demonstration of solidarity and humanitarian commitment, both air forces jointly airlifted 860 boxes of bottled water to aid the victims of the recent 6.9 magnitude earthquake in Cebu. This vital relief operation was made possible through the invaluable support and coordination of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines Area 8, the Aviation Security Unit 8, the 546th Engineering Battalion of the Philippine Army, and partner agencies from the Office of Civil Defense Regional Office VIII, under the steadfast leadership of Director Lord Byron S. Torrecarion.

Through this exercise, the Philippine Air Force seized not only a valuable training opportunity to strengthen interoperability and partnership with Japan, but also a meaningful chance to deliver real and immediate assistance to those affected by calamity, proving that collaboration in the skies can bring hope on the ground.

Through the dynamic leadership of COL ALEXON B RAMOS PAF (GSC), Group Commander, Tactical Operations Group 8, TOWCEN, this mission stands as a shining symbol of unity, compassion, and cooperation values shared by both nations and reflected in every drop of aid delivered.

One sky. Two nations.
One heart. A shared mission!
Doshin-Bayanihan lives on. (PR)

TACLOBAN CITY — The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has completed its four-day “Tara, Basa!” Tutoring Program Regional Training of Trainers on Capability Building Activities for Tutors and Youth Development Workers (YDWs), held on October 6–9, 2025, here in the city.

The training gathered representatives from recipient local government units, DepEd Division Offices of Tacloban, Ormoc, Catbalogan, Calbayog, and Samar, as well as faculty and student leaders from four partner state universities — Leyte Normal University, Eastern Visayas State University, Samar State University, and Northwest Samar State University.
The activity aimed to establish a pool of subject matter experts equipped with the technical knowledge and facilitation skills necessary to train future tutors and YDWs who will implement the next cycle of the “Tara, Basa!” Program.

The “Tara, Basa!” Tutoring Program is a DSWD initiative that provides reading and comprehension support to struggling learners while engaging youth tutors under the agency’s educational assistance and community-based learning projects.

The program also promotes intergenerational learning, with youth volunteers serving as mentors to younger students in basic education.

Through the training, the DSWD hopes to enhance the quality and consistency of local implementation by ensuring that all partner institutions and LGUs are aligned with the program’s framework and teaching strategies.

(LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)

Globe has mobilized its emergency response teams following the magnitude 7.6 earthquake that struck offshore Davao Oriental on October 10. The strong tremor, followed by multiple aftershocks, was felt across the Davao Region and neighboring provinces, prompting precautionary evacuations and temporary suspension of operations in several establishments.

Globe is closely coordinating with local government units (LGUs) and partner organizations to assess the impact of the quake and ensure continued connectivity and assistance for affected communities. Relief operations are set to take place on Monday, October 13, in Manay, Davao Oriental, in coordination with the Ayala Foundation Inc. (AFI).

“Our immediate priority is to keep people connected and informed as response efforts continue. We are working closely with local authorities to monitor the situation and provide network support where it’s needed most,” said Yoly Crisanto, Chief Sustainability and Corporate Communications Officer, Globe.

Globe services were affected across 8 provinces. All affected municipalities have since been fully restored, with network restoration reaching 100% in Agusan del Norte, Agusan del Sur, Davao de Oro, Davao Oriental, and Lanao del Sur, and 96.55% in Davao City.

Globe assures customers that it will continue to monitor the situation and deploy technical teams as needed to sustain connectivity in all affected areas. Residents are advised to stay alert, follow official advisories from PHIVOLCS and local authorities, and prioritize their safety.

More updates will be provided as the situation develops. Visit the GlobeICON