UPDATE: One dead, tsunami alert… A powerful earthquake hits the Philippines
World News Update:
Governments, analysts, and media outlets are continuing to follow this situation closely as additional details become available.
An earthquake leaves the Philippines in mourning this Monday morning. A powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake killed at least one person and caused buildings to collapse in the south of the archipelago, triggering a tsunami alert in the Pacific. Authorities in the Philippines and Indonesia called on residents of coastal regions to evacuate to higher ground after the quake, whose epicenter was some 24 km off the Sarangani province of Mindanao island. 7:37 a.m., the US Geological Survey USGS reported. Its depth has been reassessed at 55 km. The main tremor was followed by several aftershocks, including one of magnitude 6.1. A collapsed shopping center This earthquake left at least one dead, four injured and caused significant material damage in the south of the country, police said according to a preliminary assessment. “A number of buildings collapsed. “Houses also collapsed,” said Robert Dagon, a police official in General Santos, a large city on the island of Mindanao. Videos posted on Facebook showed a shopping center housing a Jollibee fast-food chain collapsing in the province of General Santos, while a building on the campus of a local school collapsed elsewhere. Alerts as far away as Japan The PTWC Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, based in Hawaii, warned that tsunami waves were possible “in the next three hours” along the coasts of the Philippines, Indonesia, Taiwan and as far as Japan. Waves of 1 to 3 meters above tide level are possible on the coasts of the Philippines and 0.3 to 1 meter for Indonesia and Malaysia. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos suspended classes in affected areas of Mindanao and called on residents in coastal areas to evacuate immediately. “Take shelter on higher ground now. Don’t wait,” he said. “Your life is more important than anything you leave behind.”Our articles on the PhilippinesLocated in the “Pacific Ring of Fire”, a zone of intense seismic activity, the Philippines experiences earthquakes daily.
Why This Matters:
Experts suggest the long-term impact of these developments may become clearer as more information emerges.
International media coverage is expected to intensify as more updates become available from official sources.
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Source: This article was originally published by 20Minutes – Actu Monde and adapted for our international English-speaking audience.
Read the original article here.