Philippines Earthquake: 7.5 Magnitude Tremors Shock Island; Tsunami Alert

PHILIPPINES: On Saturday, a powerful earthquake with a magnitude of at least 7.5 hit Mindanao in the southern Philippines, prompting evacuation orders for certain areas and issuing warnings of potential tsunami waves, reaching a meter (3 feet) or more.

The Philippine Seismology Agency Phivolcs stated that waves could impact the Philippines by midnight (1600 GMT), persisting for several hours. The US Tsunami Warning System suggested waves up to 3 meters above tide level along some Philippine coasts.

“Boats already at sea during this period should stay offshore in deep waters until further advised,” urged Phivolcs, urging immediate evacuation or moving farther inland for residents near the coasts of Surigao Del Sur and Davao Oriental provinces.

Japan’s NHK reported that tsunami waves of approximately one meter were anticipated to reach Japan’s southwestern coast roughly 30 minutes later, by 1:30 a.m. on Sunday (1630 GMT on Saturday).

While Phivolcs did not anticipate significant damage from the quake itself, it warned of potential aftershocks. Raymark Gentallan, the local police chief of the coastal town of Hinatuan near the earthquake’s epicenter, reported power outages but no identified casualties or damages yet.

The Philippines is situated on the “Ring of Fire,” a volcanic belt encircling the Pacific Ocean prone to seismic activity.

According to the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), the earthquake had a magnitude of 7.5 and occurred at a depth of 63 km (39 miles). The US Geological Survey reported a magnitude of 7.6 and a depth of 32 km (20 miles), noting the quake’s occurrence at 10:37 p.m., Philippines time (1437 GMT).