DPWH teams assess quake damage to infra in 3 regions

MANILA – The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has deployed teams to assess infrastructures in three regions following the 6.6 magnitude earthquake that shook parts of Luzon early Saturday.

In a Facebook post, Public Works Secretary Mark Villar said the groups have been dispatched to the National Capital Region (NCR), Calabarzon, and Mimaropa to evaluate the structural integrity and damage caused by the earthquake to key infrastructure.

Villar also advised the public that the department’s hotline number is accepting requests for inspections and reports regarding the tremor.

“Our hotline number, 165-02, is open 24/7 for reports, inspection requests, and rescue operations on damaged infrastructure brought about by the recent earthquake,” he said.

The DPWH, meanwhile, reported that all national roads and bridges in the NCR, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, and Mimaropa are passable to all types of vehicles.

“There has been no received report of damage as of this time on the effect of the earthquake with post-earthquake assessment ongoing,” it said in an advisory.

The magnitude 6.6 earthquake, which was tectonic in origin, rocked Calatagan, Batangas shortly before 5 a.m. on Saturday.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology reported 30 aftershocks as of 10:45 a.m., the majority of which was at magnitude 2.