Philippines earthquake death toll rises to 53

The death toll from the powerful earthquake that struck off the southern coast of Mindanao in the southern Philippines on Monday has risen to 53, authorities said on Wednesday.

The 7.9-magnitude quake has also left dozens of local residents missing and more than 680 others injured, while some 75,300 households have been affected, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

The disaster has left more than 45,000 residents displaced, with over 12,600 houses sustaining damage. The quake also triggered 45 related incidents such as landslides, cutting off many road links.

As aftershocks continue to rattle parts of Mindanao, authorities are now shifting their focus from emergency response to recovery and clean-up work.

Crews are working to clear debris and assess the damage left behind by the powerful earthquake.

Across the city of General Santos, dozens of structures have either collapsed or sustained significant damage, highlighting the scale of the destruction as recovery efforts move forward.

However, the situation remains severe closer to the source of the quake in Sarangani Province. Reaching some of the hardest-hit communities remains a challenge for relief workers, with pockets of landslides slowing access into more remote areas.

The force of the shaking was so intense that entire walls gave way, leaving family homes reduced to little more than piles of concrete, wood, and twisted metal.

Authorities say dozens of homes across Sarangani suffered the same fate, particularly in communities closest to the epicenter.

Residents have been returning to assess the damage to their homes and are trying to salvage whatever belongings they can.

"I was on the other side of the house during the earthquake and the house started shaking violently. I lay on the ground and saw my house collapse. I'm distraught that I have no place to live and all of my things are gone," said Asia Bahasuan, a local resident.

For many families there, there is relief at surviving the earthquake itself, but now figuring out how to rebuild their lives in the days and weeks ahead will prove a daunting task.

"I'm devastated, and it pains me because everyone here is affected," said Rowena Tusan, another resident.

Philippines earthquake death toll rises to 53

The swelling Euphrates River has submerged farmland and washed away roads and bridges in Syrian provinces of Deir al-Zour and Raqqa since late May.

The Syrian transitional government has ordered residents along the riverbanks to evacuate as the flood water continues to rise and has inundated villages in the region.

"No one has come to help us. The entire area is submerged. The water level has risen as high as the houses and is still rising. All people are in a hurry to find a shelter. We have nowhere to go," said a local resident.

The flood has caused the Euphrates' water surface to expand to three times its normal extent, from 60.9 square kilometers to 188.7 square kilometers.

The disaster stems from abnormal torrential rain in upstream regions coupled with large-scale water releases from dams, according to Syrian news media reports.

Citing regional water authority sources, Turkish media reported that months of high precipitation raised water levels at Turkey's Ataturk Dam, prompting authorities to carry out "controlled water releases," with the spillway gates opened for the first time in seven years.

Euphrates floods hit northeastern Syria