Powerful earthquake hits Philippines; no tsunami threat reported

  • December 15, 2019

Photo: EMSC

Philippines has been rocked by a powerful earthquake that occurred near the southern part of Davao on Sunday, the US Geological Survey said, but no threat of tsunami was reported.

The magnitude 6.8 quake was centered 61 km southwest of Davao on the southern island of Mindanao at a depth of 28.2 km, the USGS said, revising down the magnitude from an earlier 6.9.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center concluded that there is no threat of tsunami from the quake after analyzing the available data.

No reports on the damages by the quake have been reported yet; however a quake of such magnitude can damage buildings. Two strong aftershocks of magnitude 5 and 5.7 centered north of General Santos City were recorded after the main tremor.

The Philippines sits on the geologically active Pacific “Ring of Fire” and experiences frequent tremors.

Mindanao was shaken by four powerful quakes in October and November, which together killed at least 20 people.