Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Officials watch for landslides after earthquake hit Albay (12:35 p.m.)
MANILA -- Officials closed schools in the Bicol region southeast of Manila on Tuesday as a series of aftershocks to a powerful earthquake and heavy rains increased the risk of landslides in the area.
A 6.9 magnitude earthquake rocked Legazpi city in Albay province, site of the restive Mayon volcano, and southern Leyte province on Monday night, the U.S. Geological Survey said. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage, but brief power outages were reported in some areas.
Officials ordered elementary and high school classes suspended in the region due to flooding caused by heavy rains and the risk that the rains and earthquake may trigger landslides.
Some 126 villages in Albay province alone are considered highly vulnerable to landslides, said Jukes Nunez, a provincial disaster-response official.
The quake hit at 10:11 p.m. (1411GMT) Monday with an epicenter in the ocean 184 kilometers (114 miles) northeast of Catarman in Northern Samar province, at a depth of 56 kilometers (35 miles), said Ishmael Narag, head of the seismology section of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.
At least 130 aftershocks have been recorded, the institute said. One of the aftershocks Tuesday morning had a 5.9 magnitude, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Edna Meregildo, a government social worker who lives in Catarman, said she was washing the dishes when the ground shook, followed by a power outage.
"It was quite strong. I exclaimed, `God, please stop this," Meregildo told The Associated Press by telephone on Monday.
Arvin Unay, a staffer of Northern Samar's provincial disaster management unit, said the quake toppled a vase in his office but no damage was reported in his province.
Cedric Daep, an Albay provincial disaster-response official, said he ordered his men to check for possible landslides triggered by the quake in mountainous areas and in villages at the foot of Mayon volcano, but had heard of no immediate problems. |
