FOR the second time in a week, a moderate earthquake struck the seas off Davao City Friday night but no damages were reported.
Monitoring from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said the quake registered a magnitude of 5.4, similar to the tremor registered last January 4.
The center of the tectonic quake was estimated at 170 kilometers southeast of Davao City and 175 kilometers east of General Santos City with a depth of 118.1 km and occurred at 8:14 p.m. Friday
Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) Director Renato Solidum however assured in an interview that most of the quakes originating from the area are hardly felt by Mindanao residents.
“We have nothing to worry so far. These are shallow quakes and they occur mostly off the sea,” he said.
The area has been seismically active in the past few weeks. Last Monday, a 4.6-magnitude tremor struck the sea off Davao City.
The quake's epicenter is located 124 kilometers southeast of Mati, Davao Oriental with a depth of 46.8 km and occurred at 5:38 a.m., according to Phivolcs.
A 5.4-magnitude earthquake hit the cities of Davao and General Santos a day after Christmas. Its epicenter was traced at 54 kilometers northeast of Mati City in Davao Oriental and had a shallow depth of 49 kilometers from the ground. The earthquake was felt at Intensity 2 in Davao City.
Another moderate earthquake also jolted Davao provinces last December 30, but no damages were reported.
The Philippines sits in a region known as the “Pacific Ring of Fire” that is characterized by continued volcanic and seismic activity. (Virgil Lopez/Sunnex)