Another minor earthquake jolts central Philippines

A magnitude 3.7 earthquake jolted the central Philippines early Sunday morning, the fifth major aftershock felt in Metro Manila and its surrounding areas since a magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck the region Friday night, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said.

The latest shock occurred at 02:23 a.m. Sunday (18:23 GMT, Saturday) with its epicenter located 31 kilometers southeast of Calapan, Oriental Mindoro some 150 kilometers southeast of Manila, said Phivolcs.

The United States Geological Survey also said on Sunday a moderate earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale jolted the central Philippines early Sunday.

Like the previous aftershocks, the Sunday morning quake emanated from the Lubang fault and was characterized as tectonic, with a shallow 10 kilometer depth of focus, said Phivolcs.

The quake was felt at intensity 3 in Puerto Galera, Makati City, Taguig, Tanauan and the cities of Batangas and Lipa in Batangas province, and in Lucban, Quezon, while in Quezon City and Tagaytay, it was felt at intensity 2.

A Phivolcs advisory said earlier it recorded a total of 412 aftershocks since the first Friday night quake until Saturday morning.

There have been no reports of damage or casualties in all the tremors.

Phivolcs said it expected more aftershocks to occur in the next few days in the region and especially within the vicinity of the epicenter.

It said aftershocks are normally of lower magnitude than the main shock, although they could vary in felt intensities as the epicenters of these aftershocks come close to populated areas.

The Philippines is prone to the seismic upheaval and volcanic activity due to its location on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire" where continental plates meet.

Source: Xinhua