Two powerful earthquakes have struck off the southern Philippines, killing at least seven people and triggering tsunami warnings.
The biggest of Friday’s quakes, with a magnitude of 7.4, hit about 20km (12 miles) off Manay town in the Mindanao region just before 10am (01:00 GMT), according to the United States Geological Survey.
An aftershock with a 6.7 magnitude rocked the same area several hours later, one of scores that followed the morning quake.
The initial earthquake damaged a hospital and schools, knocked out power and prompted evacuations of coastal areas nearby.
Three miners tunnelling for gold were killed when a shaft collapsed in the mountains west of Manay during the larger quake, rescue official Kent Simeon of Pantukan town told AFP news agency.
One miner was pulled out alive and several others were injured in the remote hamlet of Gumayan, he said, adding: “Some tunnels collapsed, but the miners managed to get out.”
One person was killed in Mati city, the largest urban centre near the epicentre, when a wall collapsed, while another two suffered fatal heart attacks, officials said.
Another person was also crushed by falling debris in Davao City, more than 100km west of the epicentre, police said.
Philippine authorities issued tsunami warnings shortly after the morning quake, but by about noon local time, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the tsunami threat had passed.
Small waves were detected on the Indonesian and Philippine coasts on Friday after the earthquake. The Philippines and some regions of Indonesia had urged coastal communities to evacuate after the quake struck offshore in the southern Philippines.
About the Author
