7.6-magnitude earthquake off southern Philippines causes damage and tsunami evacuations
MANILA, Philippines: An offshore earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.6 hit off a southern Philippine province Friday morning, sending people out of houses and buildings in panic, knocking out power and prompting officials to order villagers to evacuate from the coastlines of nearby provinces due to a possible tsunami.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the potential damage was being assessed and rescue teams and relief operations were being prepared and would be deployed when it was safe to do so.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said it was expecting damage and aftershocks from the earthquake, which was centered at sea about 62 kilometers (38 miles) southeast of Manay town in Davao Oriental province and was caused by movement in a fault at a shallow depth of 10 kilometers (6 miles).
US Geological Survey illustration map
