The Philippines, which is located on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” which the US Geological Survey refers to as the “most seismically and volcanically active zone in the world,” experiences earthquakes frequently.
News Source By Newsparviews : Late on Saturday, an earthquake with a minimum magnitude of 7.5 occurred near Mindanao, southern Philippines. This prompted evacuation orders for parts of the country as well as the coasts of southwest Japan due to the possibility of tsunami waves measuring at least one meter (three feet) in height.
Although there had not yet been any initial reports of substantial wave damage by midnight (1600 GMT), the Philippine Seismology Agency Phivolcs warned that the waves might impact the Philippines and persist for hours.
Although it later stated there was no risk of a tsunami, the U.S. Tsunami Warning System warned that waves along some Philippine shores might reach heights of up to three meters over the typical high tide level.
“Based on all available data … the tsunami threat from this earthquake has now passed,” it stated.
According to Phivolcs, residents of the provinces of Davao Oriental and Surigao Del Sur should “move farther inland” or “immediately evacuate”.
“Boats already at sea during this period should stay offshore in deep waters until further advised,” it stated.
Unlike other parts of the Philippines, the two provinces are not highly populated and are predominantly rural.
By 1:30 a.m. on Sunday, tsunami waves up to one meter high were predicted to reach Japan’s southwest coast, according to Japanese broadcaster NHK (1630 GMT Saturday).
Phivolcs issued a warning about aftershocks even though it did not anticipate any major harm from the tremor itself.
Over a dozen aftershocks have already struck the region, with the strongest one reaching magnitude 6.4, according to the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC).
The seaside town of Hinatuan, which has a population of around 44,000 and is close to the epicenter of the earthquake, has lost electricity since the quake struck, but disaster response teams have not yet reported any injuries or damage, according to Raymark Gentallan, the local police chief.
Telling Reuters, “We’re evacuating people away from coastal areas,”
Images shared on social media by the local government of Hinatuan revealed throngs of people living in the area and lines of cars heading for higher ground. A few dozen people were occupying a single, spacious shelter.
The Philippines, which is situated on the “Ring of Fire,” a belt of volcanoes that circles the Pacific Ocean and is prone to seismic activity, experiences earthquakes frequently.
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