MANILA, Philippines - The cost of damage to infrastructure by the 7.2 magnitude quake that struck Central Visayas has breached the P1 billion mark, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said on Wednesday.
In its latest update on the effects the powerful temblor, the NDRRMC reported that more than P1.07 billion worth of roads, bridges, flood control, school buildings, and other structures were damaged in Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental and Siquijor.
The NDRRMC also recorded that there are almost 600,000 families affected by the killer quake in six provinces in regions 6 and 7, with almost 13,000 families inside 99 evacuation centers.
More than 53,000 houses in seven provinces were either totally or partially damaged by the quake while total cost of damage to infrastructure in Bohol, Cebu, Negros Oriental and Siquijor
Meanwhile, the death toll in the catastrophe has jumped to 195, the state disaster response agency said.
The NDRRMC said most of the casualties came from Bohol province, which accounted for 182 people who were killed during the powerful tremor.
The NDRRMC also recorded a total of 651 persons injured while the number of missing, who were all from Bohol, rose by one, now registering at 12.
The missing person was recorded in Antiquera town, the NDRRMC said.
For its part, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology has recorded 2,547 aftershocks since the powerful quake last Oct. 15, whose epicenter was traced to Sagbayan town in Bohol.
Of the aftershocks, only 64 were felt, the Phivolcs added.