Vice President Sara Duterte traveled to General Santos City and parts of Sarangani province this week to extend condolences to families who lost loved ones in the powerful earthquake that recently struck parts of Mindanao.

In a social media post, Duterte said she met with bereaved families and offered prayers and words of encouragement as communities continued to recover from the disaster.

“Patuloy nating ipagdasal ang lahat ng mga apektado ng nangyaring lindol, maging ang kaligtasan ng lahat,” Duterte wrote.

The Vice President said she spoke with relatives of the victims and urged them not to lose hope despite their loss.

“Dili mawad-an og paglaom ug pabilin nga magpakalig-on,” she said, referring to her appeal for affected families to remain strong and resilient.

Her visit came as local governments and disaster response agencies continued to assess the impact of the earthquake, which caused fatalities and damage in several areas of Mindanao.

The Office of the Vice President (OVP) earlier dispatched food trucks to affected areas to provide meals and support for emergency responders and other frontliners involved in relief and rescue operations.

Duterte also reminded the public to remain alert and prepared for natural disasters, noting that earthquakes can strike without warning.

“Muli nating ipinapaalala na maging alerto at patuloy na maghanda, lalo't hindi natin alam kung kailan tatama ang anumang trahedya tulad ng lindol,” she said.

A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck offshore Sarangani on 8 June. As of Saturday, the reported death toll had risen to 61, according to the Office of Civil Defense, with hundreds more injured and tens of thousands of families affected.