A MAGNITUDE 7.1 earthquake shook Davao Occidental and some parts of Mindanao and Visayas Thursday evening, January 21, 2021.
The tectonic earthquake struck at 8:23 p.m. The epicenter was located 244 kilometers southeast of Jose Abad Santos. It had a depth of 111 kilometers.
According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), the earthquake’s tremor was felt in the following areas:
Reported Intensities:
Intensity V - General Santos City; Kiamba, Glan, Maitum, & Malungon, Sarangani
Intensity IV - Mati City; Davao City; Cotabato City; Digos City; Sta Cruz, Davao del Sur; Alabel, Maasim, & Malapatan, Sarangani; Tagum City, Davao Del Norte; Koronadal City, Tupi, Lake Sebu, Banga & Polomolok, South Cotabato
Intensity III - San Francisco, Southern Leyte; Datu Blah T. Sinsuat, Maguindanao; Zamboanga City; Cagayan De Oro City; Tandag City, Surigao Del Sur; Sto Nino, South Cotabato
Intensity II - City of Bislig, Surigao del Sur; Talakag, Kalilangan, Baungon, Malitbog, Don Carlos, Valencia City and Maramag, Bukidnon; Camiguin Island; Kidapawan City; Baybay City, Leyte; Taguloan, Jasaan, Balingansag, Balingoan, Magsaysay and Gingoog City, Misamis Oriental
Instrumental Intensities:
Intensity V - Kiamba, Sarangani
Intensity IV - City of General Santos; Alabel, Sarangani; Koronadal City, South Cotabato
Intensity III - Kidapawan City; City of Bislig, Surigao del Sur; City of Gingoog, Misamis Oriental
Intensity II - City of Cagayan de Oro; City of Surigao, Surigao del Norte; City of Borongan, Eastern Samar; Zamboanga City
Intensity I - City of Catbalogan, Samar
Authorities said though that the quake was too deep to cause major damage, and no tsunami warning was issued.
In Davao City, some residents ran out of their houses as the ground shook and power cables and business signs swayed, but there were no reports of damage or injuries.
The USGS said there was a low likelihood of casualties or damage. The US Tsunami Warning System said there was no tsunami threat. Deep earthquakes generally cause less damage on the Earth’s surface.
The southern Davao region has been battered by powerful earthquakes set off by local fault lines in recent years.
The Philippines lies along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an arc of faults around the Pacific Ocean where most of the world’s earthquakes occur. It is also lashed by about 20 typhoons and tropical storms each year, making it one of the world’s most disaster-prone countries.
A magnitude 7.7 quake killed nearly 2,000 people in the northern Philippines in 1990. (NRC/AP)