Late on Saturday ( Dec 2 ), an earthquake of at least magnitude 7.5 struck Mindanao andnbsp in the southern Philippines, causing evacuation orders for some areas and southwestern Japanese coasts due to warnings of tsunami waves of a metre or more.
According to the Philippine Seismology Agency Phivolcs, the waves could reach the country by midnight ( 1600 GMT ) and last for several hours.
According to the United States Tsunami Warning System, there may be waves along some Asian coasts that are up to 3 meters above the sea level.
Phivolcs advised people living close to the coast of Surigao Del Sur and Davao Oriental provinces to “immediately remove” or “move further upriver” because “boats now at sea during this period may remain abroad in strong waters until more advised.”
Up to a meter-sized tsunami waves, according to Japanese broadcaster NHK, are anticipated to arrive on Japan’s southwest coast 30 minutes later, by 1.30 am on Sunday ( 1630 GMT on Saturday ).
Phivolcs stated that while it anticipated significant damage from the vibration itself, it was also concerned about waves.
Electricity has been knocked out since the earthquake struck, according to Raymark Gentallan, the local police chief of the seaside town of Hinatuan, close to the epicenter, but crisis response teams have not yet seen any casualties or destruction.
The Philippines, which is located on the” Ring of Fire,” a belt of lava that encircles the Pacific Ocean and is prone to tectonic activity, experiences frequent disasters.
A collapse of magnitude 7.5, according to the European- Mediterranean Seismological Centre ( EMSC), had occurred at a level of 63 km.
According to the US Geographic Survey, the earthquake struck at 10.37 p.m. in the Philippines ( 1437 GMT ) and had a depth of 32 km.