By UCA News reporter
PHILIPPINES – A Catholic archdiocese in the Philippines has launched a campaign to help earthquake victims cope with the psychological trauma caused by a recent 6.9-magnitude earthquake that rattled the country.
Along with the food and medical aid provided, the Cebu Archdiocesan Relief and Rehabilitation Unit (RRU) has launched a psychological support initiative in its territory, Radio Veritas Asia (RVA) reported on Oct 12.
The group has conducted “psychological de-stress briefings” for around 228 beneficiaries in the towns of Medellin, San Remigio, Bantayan, and Daanbantayan, said Father Charles Jayme, head of the RRU.
Many earthquake victims in the area “experienced anxiety and trauma caused by widespread injuries, food scarcity, and disruption of basic services,” RVA reported, citing Jayme.
He added that economic hardship and continued aftershocks have prolonged the suffering of some survivors, leading to depression.
The 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck central Philippines on Sep 30, severely impacting the northern Cebu region, killing 75 people and injuring 1,271 others, media reports said, citing local authorities.
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), four aftershocks of magnitude 5 or higher have been recorded since the first quake hit the Philippines.
The affected people include those in the Philippines’ Visayan Islands, which include Cebu, Biliran, and Leyte, Al Jazeera reported.
On Oct 10, another magnitude-7.4 earthquake struck off the southern Philippines, killing at least six people and triggering regional tsunami warnings that were later lifted, AFP reported.
The tremors had reportedly caused minor and scattered damage, according to witnesses. More than 100 aftershocks have been recorded, some of them with a magnitude of at least 5.0.
Jayme pointed out that the survivors were encouraged to recall their experiences of the Sep 30 earthquake and reflect on how they coped with its impact, RVA reported.
He pointed out that a sympathetic listener helps survivors open up, following which the RRU team provides words of comfort and counseling.
“In cases of intense grief or trauma, a clinical psychologist steps in to offer professional intervention,” Jayme said.
The RRU team is slated to visit the Barangay Binabag in Bogo City, where 11 people, including eight children, died due to an earthquake-induced landslide on Sep 30.
They were laid to rest in a mass grave on Oct 8.
Located on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an arc of intense seismic activity stretching from Japan through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin, earthquakes are a near-daily occurrence in the Philippines.
In 1976, an 8.0-magnitude quake off Mindanao island’s southwest coast unleashed a tsunami that left 8,000 people dead or missing. It is considered the Philippines’ deadliest single natural disaster. – UCA News
