7.2 magnitude earthquake strikes Philippines: 144 dead, state of emergency declared

October 15, 2013 – PHILIPPINES – Tuesday morning. Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said the epicenter was recorded at 2 kilometers south of Carmen, Bohol and was tectonic in origin. The earthquake occurred around 8:12 in the morning and was also felt in Cebu, Masbate, Iloilo, Samar, Negros Oriental, Siquijor and in Northern Mindanao. The National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC) said at least 144 people were reported dead and 33 injured in the wake of the quake: at least 16 dead in Cebu, 69 in Bohol and one person in Siquijor. But the Bohol Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (PDRRMC) said they recorded at least 20 dead and 102 injured. Phivolcs head Renato Solidum said they are classifying the quake as a “major earthquake.” He also said the quake emanated from the East Bohol Fault. Solidum also said around a hundred aftershocks have already been reported. They have not raised the tsunami warning after the quake, he said. Power outages were reported in Cebu City, Masbate and Bohol, the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) Central Visayas’ Twitter account said. Tagbilaran City in Bohol was one of the worst-hit by today’s quake. Several old structures, including old churches and government buildings including city hall sustained some of the worst damage in the tremor. The number of fatalities could rise as more bodies are recovered from the rubble.

Many of the most historical and oldest churches in the Philippines are found in Bohol. The churches of Loboc, Baclayon, Loon and Dauis, which are hundreds of years old, sustained heavy damage. Just 20-minutes away from Tagbilaran City, the ceiling of the centuries-old Loboc Church collapsed. No one was hurt in the incident. “The whole center of the structure has collapsed to the floor. and the facade is gone… also the tower on the side, the top half has colapsed onto the street,” tourist Robert Michael Poole told ANC. Bohol Gov. Edgar Chatto appealed to residents to remain calm amid aftershocks continue to be felt across the province. “We also have reports of old buildings especially the old city hall of Tagbilaran was not spared…We are just asking people to be cautious but not to be really panicky,” Chatto told ANC. Officials have already declared a state of calamity in the province. In a report from DZMM’s Johnson Manabat, some flights to and from Bohol were cancelled. Authorities said part of the ceiling of the Tagbilaran airport fell during the quake and they are also currently checking if the runway was damaged. Airline Company Cebu Pacific cancelled two of its flights to Tagbilaran and the return flights to Manila. –Yahoo, BBC

Volcano Watch: Kanlaon Volcano, also spelled as Kanla-on or Canlaon, is an active volcano on Negros island in central Philippines. The stratovolcano straddles the provinces of Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental, approximately 30 km (19 mi) southeast of Bacolod City, the capital and most populous city of Negros Occidental. Aftershocks from the 7.2 magnitude earthquake have been felt across the region. The last time the Canlaon volcano erupted was in 2006. Large earthquakes of this magnitude are notorious for triggering volcanic eruptions. The 1996 eruption of Karymsky volcano was preceded by a magnitude-7.1 earthquake. The events of the 1991 Mount Pinatubo eruption began in July 1990, when a magnitude 7.8 earthquake occurred 100 kilometers (62 miles) northeast of the Pinatubo region. Geologists later determined the quake to be a result of the reawakening of Mount Pinatubo. A 5.1 magnitude earthquake also triggered the 1980 eruption of Mount St.  Helens Volcano. –TEP