Tuesday evening in parts of
Mindanao was rudely interrupted by an earthquake of moderate strength that
occurred in the province of North Cotabato. Inquirer.net
has it that the quake, measured by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology
and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) to initially be of magnitude 5.3, occurred at 8:37 PM
of July 9, with an epicenter of 20 kilometers southeast of the municipality of
Makilala, 14 kilometers deep into the ground. The tectonic temblor was felt
throughout Region XII SOCCSKSARGEN, as well as parts of Davao Region (XI) and
Bangsamoro (BARRM). While no casualties or significant damages were reported,
it was an unexpected scare to Mindanaoans.
In terms of earthquake strength, the
tremor was particularly strong and palpable within the affected areas due to
its shallow tectonic depth. Makilala itself, along with the North Cotabato capital
of Kidapawan City and its South Cotabato counterpart of Koronadal, Digos and
Santa Cruz in the Metro Davao area, all recorded maximum shaking of no less
than Intensity V under the PHIVOLCS Earthquake Intesity Scale, characterized by
visible shaking of twigs on trees. In Digos, store products were pictured
falling off shelves in supermarkets, while social media showed cam-phone
footage of moviegoers evacuating a cinema.
A step down on the scale,
Intensity IV was felt in Davao City itself, as well as the South Cotabato municipalities
of Polomolok, Tupi, Tampakan, Quirino and Santo Niño, the city of Tacurong in
Sultan Kudarat, and the Sarangani towns of Glan and Malungon. Also in
Sarangani, Kiamba reported earthquake Intensity III, as did General Santos
City. Finally Intensity II rocked the Bangsamoro independent component Cotabato
City, and the Compostela Valley provincial capital of Nabunturan. The most
prominent report of structural damage made thus far was of a portion of the wall
in a Makilala residence that collapsed due to proximity to the quake’s
epicenter.
PHIVOLCS would later scale up the
magnitude of the temblor to 5.6 following the incident, and warned of the high
possibility of aftershocks. Roughly 30 minutes later at 9:08 PM the first such
shock occurred with a magnitude of 2.8, followed by a second two minutes later
at magnitude 2.2; the last prominent aftershock of the evening was measured at
magnitude 2.1, happening 9:37 PM.
0 comments:
Post a Comment