2023-12-03 11:14:17
According to authorities, at least two people have died in a magnitude 7.6 earthquake in the southern Philippines. Several people were also injured as a result of the earthquake on Saturday, which was followed by at least two aftershocks of magnitude 6.4 and 6.2 by Sunday, according to the US Earthquake Observatory USGS. Initially, no major damage to buildings or infrastructure was reported, civil protection officials said on Sunday.
The quake struck at a depth of 32 kilometers at 10:37 p.m. local time, about 21 kilometers northeast of Hinatuan municipality on the island of Mindanao, according to the USGS. Local authorities had warned of a “destructive tsunami” and asked 45,000 people in coastal areas to evacuate. A few hours later, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii lifted its warning.
A 30-year-old man died in the town of Bislig in Surigao del Sur province, said local civil protection official Pacifica Pedraverde. A wall in the man’s house collapsed and fell on him. In the city, some roads cracked during the tremor and aftershocks but were still passable, Pedraverde said.
A pregnant woman died in the city of Tagum, Davao del Norte province, the National Disaster Management Agency said. The office did not provide any further information about the death.
About a hundred kilometers north of Bislig, in the town of Tandag, two people suffered injuries from falling debris, according to an official. The national disaster authority put the number of injured at four – although it was initially unclear whether the two injured people from Tandag were included in this tally.
“It was the longest, strongest earthquake I’ve ever experienced, it probably lasted almost four minutes,” said 25-year-old Dyl Constantino. He had experienced the earthquake on Siargo Island in northeast Mindanao. “We’re all used to earthquakes, but this one was different because the doors really shook and we all panicked,” he continued.
The Philippines lies on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, where several plates collide. Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions therefore occur frequently in the Southeast Asian island nation. Almost two weeks ago, at least nine people were killed in a magnitude 6.7 earthquake in Mindanao.
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