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Map of Nueva Ecija showing the location of Cabanatuan City.

The 1990 Luzon earthquake occurred on Monday, July 16, 1990, at 4:26 PM local time in the Philippines. The densely populated island of Luzon was struck by an earthquake with a 7.8 M_s (surface-wave magnitude). The earthquake produced a 125 km-long ground rupture that stretched from Dingalan, Aurora to Kayapa, Nueva Vizcaya as a result of strike-slip movements along the Philippine Fault Zone and the Digdig Fault. The earthquake epicenter was placed at 15º 42' N and 121º 7' E near the town of Rizal, Nueva Ecija, northeast of Cabanatuan City.^[1]

The earthquake caused damage in an area of about 20,000 square kilometers, from northwest of Manila through the Central Luzon and into the mountains of the Cordillera Administrative Region. About 1,600 people were killed, mostly in the central Luzon and Cordillera region. This was one of the deadliest and costliest natural disasters in the Philippines.

Baguio City, a popular tourist destination, was one of the hardest hit with the number of deaths estimated at around 1000. Several private and public buildings were severely damaged or destroyed, many of which were hotels. One of the buildings destroyed was a five-star Hyatt Hotel; its 12 story section collapsed over the lobby area killing about 50 people. Nevada Hotel, another five-star hotel, was damaged beyond repair when the lower level collapsed, killing about 40 people. Many affected residents, who lost their homes or their place to stay, ended up setting up tents in public parks, such as in Burnham Park, or in the streets. Kennon Road, one of the major routes from Manila to Baguio City, was shut down due to severe landslides.

For the first 48 hours after the earthquake, the city was isolated from the rest of the country. Electric, water, and communication lines were destroyed. The city was inaccessible by land because of landslides and inaccessible by air, except to helicopters, because of damage at the airport. Food and fuel were scarce. Because hospital buildings were damaged, patients were relocated under tents set up in open spaces in front of hospitals. Damage to homes and the occurrence of many aftershocks caused most residents to set up camps in open spaces in the city. Three days after the earthquake, a main road leading to the city was cleared to enable delivery of supplies. .^[2]

Cabanatuan City has many concrete buildings, most of which are three stories high. The only building that collapsed during the earthquake was Philippine Christian College, the tallest building in the city with six floors. The city suffered about 363 casualties (including 274 students trapped in the collapsed Philippine Christian College), with 154 of them dead.

In Dagupan City, About 90 buildings in the city were damaged, and about 20 collapsed. Some structures sustained damage because liquefaction caused buildings to sink as much as 1 meter (39 inches). The earthquake caused a decrease in the elevation of the city and several areas were flooded. The city suffered 64 casualties of which 47 survived and 17 died. Most injuries were sustained during stampedes at a university building and a theater.

Five municipalities in La Union were affected: Agoo, Aringay, Caba, Santo Tomas, and Tubao with a combined population of 132,208. Many buildings collapsed or were severely damaged. 100000 families were displaced when two coastal villages sank. The province suffered 500000 casualties and 32 of them died.

This short section requires expansion.

This short section requires expansion.

This short section requires expansion.

• The July 16 Luzon Earthquake: A Technical Monograph. Inter-Agency Committee for Documenting and Establishing Database on the July 1990 Earthquake. Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (2001). Retrieved on 2007-07-16.

• Baguio City Earthquake
• The 1990 Baguio City Earthquake
• International notes Earthquake Disaster - Luzon, Philippines
• Rapid.Org.UK - Philippines earthquake
• Disaster Recovery Journal - Earthquake Devastates Philippines