Philippine officials warn of risk of “devastating tsunami” and called for the population of coastal areas to move inland after a 7.6-magnitude earthquake and at least two strong aftershocks shook the island of Mindanao in the archipelago’s south. No casualties or damage have been reported at this time.
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The earthquake occurred at a depth of 32 kilometers at around 22:37 local time (14:37 GMT), approximately 21 km northeast of Hinatuan municipality in Surigao del Sur province, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported. ).
According to the same source, a few hours later, two more strong aftershocks of magnitude 6.4 and 6.2 were experienced in the region..
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The initial tremors caused authorities to issue a tsunami warning and ask coastal residents to move to higher areas. “A devastating tsunami with life-threatening wave heights is expected,” the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said on social network X.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (OTWC) in Hawaii also issued a warning but later announced that the warning had been removed. “There is no longer a tsunami threat due to this earthquake,” OTWC said in a message published at 16:45 ET. But the Philippine Institute of Seismology remained alert..
It announced that waves more than one meter above average were expected to reach the coast and urged the population of Surigao del Sur and Davao Oriental provinces to “immediately evacuate” to higher ground or further inland. Boat owners were ordered to secure their boats and move away from shore.
Hinatuan Police Sergeant Joseph Lambo said the municipality’s 45,000 residents were ordered to leave their homes.. Many set out for higher ground on foot or in vehicles.
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“At the police station, devices on shelves fell and two televisions were broken. Motorcycles parked outside also fell,” Lambo told AFP.
A video shared on social media and verified by AFP shows drinks bottles and other products falling from the shelves of a supermarket as workers fled outside.
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Other footage recorded by 26-year-old Dennis Orong showed people shouting and running on a street in Surigao del Sur’s coastal municipality of Lianga. “I was shaking with fear because the power poles were exploding,” he told AFP.
Dyl Constantino, 25, was on the island of Siargao in northeastern Mindanao when the tremor struck: “This was the longest and strongest earthquake I’ve ever experienced, it probably lasted about four minutes.” he told AFP. “We’re used to earthquakes here, but this was different because the doors really shook and we all panicked,” he continued.
Bethanie Valledor, 24, was sleeping in a hotel in the town of Bislig, about 20 km southwest of Hinatuan, when she woke up from the shaking. “I felt like the room we were staying in was going to collapse,” she told AFP. “We are very close to the sea. The hotel owner asked us to evacuate immediately. To tell you the truth, I was screaming. I panicked,” she explained.
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The earthquake occurred almost two weeks after a 6.7 magnitude earthquake struck Mindanao.It caused the deaths of at least nine people. Earthquakes are common in the Philippines, which lies along the “Ring of Fire”, an arc of intense seismic and volcanic activity that extends from Japan to Southeast Asia and the Pacific basin.
Most are very weak and imperceptible, but strong, devastating earthquakes occur randomly, and there is no technology to predict when and where they will occur.
AFP
Source: Exame
