‘Shaking was so strong’: earthquake in Philippines triggers tsunami warning

A strong earthquake of magnitude 7.4 struck offshore in the southern Philippines on Friday, its seismology agency said, with tsunami warnings issued in several countries and people in nearby coastal areas urged to move inland or to higher ground.

Agency Phivolcs warned of aftershocks from the quake, which struck in waters off Manay town in Davao Oriental in the Mindanao region. It revised down the magnitude from an initial reading of 7.6 to 7.4 and put the depth of the quake at 23km (14.3 miles).

At least one person was killed, civil defence official Raffy Alejandro said on social media.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre (PTWC) issued an update around noon local time saying the tsunami threat in the Philippines had passed, having earlier said waves one to three metres (three to nine feet) high were possible, although warnings from other agencies remained in place.

There were no other reports of casualties from disaster offices in the region, but one official in Manay said there were initial reports of damage to homes, buildings and bridges.

The earthquake came two weeks after the Philippines experienced its deadliest quake in more than a decade, with 72 people killed on the island of Cebu. That was a magnitude of 6.9 and also struck offshore.