Tsunami warnings issued across the region following the powerful quake

A building lies in ruins after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck southern Philippines on Monday. [Yonhap]
A building lies in ruins after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck southern Philippines on Monday. [Yonhap]

A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck southern Philippines on Monday, killing at least 32 people.

The quake hit Glan, a mountain village in Sarangani province on the island of Mindanao, triggering landslides that buried homes and killed 13 residents, local disaster management official Renee Punzalan told DZBB radio.

The Philippine Civil Defense Office had earlier said at least 19 people died from building collapses and other quake-related causes, with thousands of residents forced to evacuate. The combined death toll now stands at a minimum of 32.

At least seven people were killed in General Santos City, a major urban center of about 700,000 people located roughly 60 kilometers north of the epicenter.

Several buildings in the city collapsed or sustained heavy damage, including a Jollibee fast-food outlet inside a shopping center.

A building at Notre Dame of Dadiangas University also collapsed. On Balut Island in the neighboring province of Davao Oriental, falling rocks and landslides claimed additional lives.

The quake struck at 7:37 a.m. local time in waters off the southern coast of Mindanao. The U.S. Geological Survey said the hypocenter was at a depth of 55.2 kilometers.

Tsunami warnings were issued for the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia before being lifted several hours after the quake.

Waves of roughly 1 meter — reaching a maximum of 1.4 meters — were recorded along coastal areas near the epicenter in the Philippines. In one coastal village in South Zamboanga province on Mindanao, six stilt houses were destroyed by the tsunami.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PhiVolcs) said more than 200 aftershocks had followed the main quake, including one of magnitude 6.7, with at least nine felt across Mindanao.

PhiVolcs director Teresito Bacolcol described the earthquake as a "major quake" and urged residents not to return to damaged homes or buildings without first consulting experts, warning that aftershocks could trigger further collapses.

The Philippine government ordered more than 5,800 schools in affected areas to close to protect students. General Santos International Airport suspended operations before partially reopening for government, military and relief flights.


20ki@heraldcorp.com