A month and a half after the 6.5-magnitude earthquake that struck the province of Leyte last July 6, 2017, another magnitude 5.1 aftershock hit the area at around 6:26 AM on Wednesday, August 23, 2015. Trauma was yet again experienced by the citizens. From the statement of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), the epicenter of the said earthquake was Talisayan, Albuera, Leyte, an area near the previous epicenter—Ormoc.
Immediately, rescue teams and different government agencies gathered at the Ormoc City hall to organize the operations to be done throughout the day.
DPWH Leyte Fourth District Engineering Office was no exception. Led by District Engineer Lino Francisco C. Gonzalez, Assistant District Engineer Irwin L. Antonio, and Construction Chief Renato V. Frias, at around 8 o’clock in the morning, inspection of national roads and bridges leading to Ormoc were immediately conducted. Teams were deployed to all areas of the Fourth District of Leyte. Public buildings and other infrastructure were also inspected including health centers, schools, flood mitigation structures, and other public buildings.
Fortunately, no major damages were reported. All roads and bridges were passable and no additional damages were observed. As for school buildings on the other hand, only minor cracks on plastered walls were found, which is nothing to worry about. All infrastructures were safe.
DE Lino Francisco C. Gonzalez and ADE Irwin L. Antonio then proceeded to the meeting called for by the City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (CDRRMC) at the Ormoc City Hall to share their assessment reports together with other agencies involved.
At the said meeting, it was reported that no major damages were observed aside from the worsened damages by the previous earthquake. Unfortunately however, there were two casualties, one due to heart attack, and another one due to injuries.