A massive 7.8-magnitude earthquake that tore through the restive southern Philippine region of Mindanao on Monday has left at least 35 people dead, sparked widespread damage, and triggered urgent disaster response efforts from both the Philippine government and regional neighbor Australia.
The powerful tremor caused a building housing popular local fast-food chain Jollibee to collapse, sent terrified schoolchildren fleeing for safety across the Soccsksargen region, and prompted immediate tsunami warnings across the island archipelago. As of Wednesday, emergency search and rescue teams were still working through piles of rubble to recover victims, with at least 12 people remaining unaccounted for.
In an official statement released shortly after the disaster, Australia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong confirmed the country stands ready to deploy humanitarian assistance to the Philippines should Manila request support. “Our thoughts are with the Australian-Filipino community, the people of the Philippines, and all those affected by the earthquake near Mindanao,” Wong said. “We stand with our close friends at this time of great difficulty.” Wong is currently in Berlin for scheduled bilateral talks with European leaders focused on the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and efforts to reopen the strategically critical Strait of Hormuz.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has moved quickly to coordinate a national response, directing all relevant government agencies to deploy resources to affected areas and suspending all classes across Mindanao until further notice. In a social media update addressed to the public, Marcos Jr. said he remains in constant contact with regional disaster teams and local government leaders on the ground. “The national government is moving and we will not leave Mindanao behind,” he emphasized.
Mindanao, the southernmost major island of the Philippines that shares a maritime border with Malaysia, has a long history of recurring security and humanitarian crises. For decades, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) waged an armed separatist insurgency against the Philippine central government, while the jihadist criminal network Abu Sayyaf Group has also maintained a persistent presence in the region. In 2017, the Philippine military launched a months-long campaign to liberate the city of Marawi from Islamic State-affiliated militant groups that had seized control of large swathes of the urban area. More recently, the two men accused of carrying out the 2024 Bondi Beach shooting in Sydney are alleged to have traveled to Davao City, Mindanao’s largest urban center, in 2025.