Natural disaster - Earth in the Philippines never comes to rest
The earth in the south of the Philippines is not coming to rest: almost 2,000 aftershocks have been recorded since the massive tremors on Saturday, according to the local earthquake monitoring center Phivolcs. On Monday night, there was another severe quake with a magnitude of 6.8 in the same province, it said. The population should expect further tremors in the coming weeks, but the intensity will decrease over time, said Phivolcs director Teresito Bacolcol on Philippine television.
Meanwhile, the death toll rose to three and more than a dozen people were injured, according to the authorities. Around 100,000 people were displaced, according to civil protection. "Those affected should stay in evacuation centers and consult with civil engineers to see if it is already safe to return to their homes," explained Bacolcol. "If there are visible cracks or damage, the houses could collapse in a strong aftershock."
The quake on Saturday off the coast of the province of Surigao Del Sur in the east of the island of Mindanao occurred at a shallow depth. The US earthquake observatory had put the quake at a magnitude of 7.6, the Philippine authorities at 7.4. An initial tsunami warning was later lifted.
The Southeast Asian island state lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire, the most geologically active zone on earth. Volcanic eruptions and earthquakes are not uncommon. In 1990, a magnitude 7.8 quake caused severe devastation on the island of Luzon. More than 2,400 people died at the time.
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Source: www.stern.de
