Claim: Photos show collapsed buildings and huge cracks splitting concrete roads in the aftermath of the recent earthquakes in Cebu and Davao.
Why we fact-checked this: The claim was posted by the Facebook page “Mindanao Viners,” which has 105,000 followers. As of writing, the post has 47,000 reactions, 4,400 comments, and 3,500 shares.
The post, which shows aerial photos of damaged houses and roads split open, mentions a magnitude 6.6 quake and a magnitude 6.5 earthquake in October 2019. It also references the more recent quakes in Cebu and Davao.
Social media users expressed their alarm and dismay in the comments section, with several believing the images showed the aftermath of the recent earthquakes in Cebu and Davao. It was also reshared by other pages with captions stating that the images were from the Cebu and Davao quakes.
The facts: The images do not show the aftermath of the recent earthquakes in Cebu and Davao. AI image detection tool Sightengine analyzed the image and flagged it as 99% likely to be AI-generated.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology has no record of earthquakes in Cebu and Davao of the magnitude claimed in the post documented in October 2019.
What does exist are records of a magnitude 6.6 quake in Cotabato on October 29, 2019, followed by a magnitude 6.5 quake on October 31, 2019.
Series of earthquakes: The post circulated amid the earthquakes that struck Mindanao, occurring within days of each other. (READ: 3 large-magnitude tremors in 11 days: Are earthquakes related?)
On September 30, a magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck Bogo, Cebu. The earthquake was tectonic in origin and occurred at a depth of 10 kilometers. As of October 16, the National Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Council reported at least 76 deaths and more than 1,300 people injured. Multiple aftershocks were recorded following the earthquake.
More than a week after the earthquake in Bogo, Cebu, a strong 7.4 magnitude quake struck off the coast of Manay, Davao Oriental, on October 10. A total of 179 aftershocks were recorded within an hour of the earthquake. Hours later, a separate magnitude 6.8 earthquake also struck nearby. At least eight people were reported dead. – Owenh Toledo/Rappler.com
Owenh Toledo is a graduate of Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program. This fact check was reviewed by a member of Rappler’s research team and a senior editor. Learn more about Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program here.
