Manila: A tsunami warning was generated after a massive measuring 7.6 magnitude earthquake struck the Philippines on Friday. Evacuation advisories were issued for coastal areas of the country.
The offshore quake hit waters off Manay town in Davao Oriental, Mindanao, at a depth of 10 km, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said. It warned of possible damage and aftershocks.
Though there was no immediate reports of casualties or damage, Phivolcs urged residents in coastal areas of the central and southern Philippines to move to higher ground or further inland as a precaution.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii has meanwhile said dangerous waves could occur within 186 miles of the quake’s epicentre. Waves up to 3 meters high were possible along parts of the Philippine coast, with smaller waves expected in Indonesia and Palau, it warned.
Some buildings were reported to have been damaged. It was very strong,” Reuters has quoted Edwin Jubahib, governor of the southern Philippine province of Davao Oriental as saying.
Videos circulating on social media showed fear and panic among people during the temblor. Another footage taken at what seemed to be a fish rearing outlet, showed water in the glass containers and buckets shaking violently.
As a precaution, a tsunami warning was also issued in Indonesia for its northern Sulawesi and Papua regions, warning of waves as high as 50 cm hitting the country’s shorelines.
Friday’s powerful quake struck just two weeks after the Philipines witnessed the deadliest earthquake in over a decade that killed 72 people on Cebu. That quake had a magnitude of 6.9.