Huge magnitude 7.8 earthquake strikes the Philippines as buildings collapse and tsunami threat sends locals racing to higher ground
A huge earthquake has struck the Philippines with the region now facing a tsunami threat.
The quake, which was recorded as an 7.8 magnitude, struck at a depth of 10km on Monday morning, according to the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ).
The research centre had earlier pegged the earthquake at 8.2.
The GFZ said the southern Philippines island of Mindanao was struck with authorities now warning residents to seek higher ground after a series of tsunami alerts were issued.
‘Based on the local tsunami scenario database, it is expected to experience wave heights of more than one meter above the normal tides and may be higher on enclosed bays and straits,’ the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said in a statement.
‘It is forecasted that the first tsunami waves will arrive between 07:37am to 09:37am (PST). These waves may continue for hours.’
People in the coastal areas of Sarangani, Davao Occidental, Tawi-tawi, Sulu, Basilan, Zamboanga Del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay, Sultan Kudarat and South Cotabato are strongly advised to immediately evacuate to higher grounds or move inland.
Police chief of Alabel town in Sarangani in the Philippines, said the police building had some cracks immediately after the quake, which occurred during their flag-raising ceremony, while a Jollibee building collapsed.
A huge earthquake has struck the Philippines with the region now facing a tsunami threat
The quake, which was recorded as an 7.8 magnitude, struck at a depth of 10km on Monday morning
A series of earthquakes, or ‘aftershocks’ as authorities described them, continue to impact the region
‘This is the strongest earthquake we’ve experienced,’ chief Benjie Ancheta told Reuters via phone.
Ancheta said there were no immediate reports of casualties, however said some people fainted following the strong tremor.
A series of earthquakes, or ‘aftershocks’ as authorities described them, continue to impact the region, with magnitudes ranging from 3.7 to 1.3 recorded.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center has issued an alert for possible hazardous tsunami waves within the next three hours along some coasts of Indonesia, Philippines, Palau, Taiwan and Papua New Guinea.
New Zealand’s National Emergency Management Agency has ruled out any impact the earthquake could have in causing a tsunami that could affect New Zealand.
‘NEMA has assessed the information with the assistance of science advisors,’ the agency said in a statement.
‘Based on current information, the initial assessment is that the earthquake is unlikely to have caused a tsunami that will affect New Zealand.’
The Philippines and Indonesia are tectonically complex parts of the ‘Pacific Ring of Fire’, a seismically active belt stretching from South America to the Russian Far East, Reuters reports.
More to come.
