A 7.6 magnitude earthquake was recorded off the island of Mindanao, in the Philippines, as reported by the US seismological center Usgs. The U.S. Geological Survey, which monitors seismic activity around the world, located the hypocenter at a depth of 32 kilometers and about 21.2 kilometers southeast of the city of Hinatuan.
The US tsunami warning system issued a warning for Indonesia, Malaysia, Palau and the Philippines. The Philippines is located on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, an area of great seismic and volcanic activity where about 7,000 earthquakes are recorded every year, although in most cases they are moderate.
Philippine authorities have warned of a “destructive tsunami” and called on people living in coastal areas to flee inland after a powerful earthquake hit the south of the country today. “A destructive tsunami with waves of life-threatening height is expected,” the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said on X, after the 7.6 magnitude earthquake that hit the island of Mindanao.
Tsunami warning lifted in the Philippines, warnings also in Japan
The tsunami warning issued by the agency that monitors the situation in the Pacific has been lifted in the Philippines. The early warning, triggered after a series of strong tremors that occurred in the depths of the sea, concerned a part of Mindinao, in the south of the country. “Based on all available information, the tsunami threat from this earthquake has ended,” the US service said. “Remain cautious especially if you are near the sea,” the agency said, noting that it had recorded variations between one and eight centimeters above the normal tide along the eastern coast of Mindanao. “Slight sea level fluctuations may occur in some coastal areas near the earthquake in the next few hours,” the US service said. For its part, the Philippine Department of Seismology Phivolcs continues to warn of the arrival of waves of “more than one meter above the normal tide” or even higher in closed areas such as bays and straits, more than two hours after the earthquake. The strong tremor also caused an alert in Japan, where in the south-eastern areas of the country there was a risk of waves up to one meter higher than the normal tide. The United States Geological Survey (USGS), which monitors seismic activity around the world, located the hypocenter at a depth of 32 kilometers and about 21.2 kilometers southeast of the city of Hinatuan, where more than 40,000 inhabitants. The main shock, clearly felt in Davao, Mindanao’s most populous city, was followed by smaller tremors, including those of magnitude 6.4 and 5.8 in the same area, according to USGS data.