News: No damages in Mindanao quake –NDRRMC

[Unpublished]
Feb 17 for Feb 18, 2013
Written by: Dennis D. Estopace, Reporter
for BusinessMirror newspaper

A MAGNITUDE 6.2 earthquake recorded in Mindanao Saturday [Feb. 16] afternoon by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) caused no damages, an official said.

“No damages were reported by our provincial offices [as of this time],” ” NDRRMC spokesman Maj. Reynaldo Balido Jr. told the BusinessMirror in a text message.

The USGS website said the quake had a depth of 98.2 kilometers and was monitored about 28 kms southeast of Caburan, Davao del Sur Province.

A magnitude 6.2 quake was also monitored by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology to have occurred Saturday afternoon.

The Phivolcs bulletin said this quake was recorded east of Sarangani, Davao Del Sur.

However, government seismologists’ tsunami alert warning is dated February 14 and no alert was issued after the USGS quake alert. Phivolcs is the sole agency that would issue tsunami alerts, according to a briefing by a staff of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).

According to the USGS, the Philippine plate interface "has been associated with few great (M>8.0) ‘megathrust’ earthquakes."

The USGS said that the 1976 Moro Gulf earthquake, which led to 7,100 casualties, had a magnitude of 7.6.

“A number of other active intra-arc fault systems are associated with high seismic activity, including the Cotabato Fault and the Verde Passage-Sibuyan Sea Fault.”

Phivolcs also recorded 14 volcanic earthquakes during the past 24-hour observation period in Taal Volcano’s seismic network.

“One of these events which occurred at 10:25 AM yesterday [February 16] was felt at Intensity III by residents of Barangay Bignay located in the north-eastern part of the island.”

Meanwhile, the NDRRMC said search and rescue operations are ongoing to find five persons missing in the landslide at a coal mining operation in Barangay Semirara, Caluya, Antique on or about 11:54 p.m. of February 13.

Five persons aged between 26 to 39 years old were confirmed dead while two are still being treated at hospitals in Caluya and in UST in Manila, the NDRRMC said.

A Marjun Catoto, 23, has been released from the company hospital.

The DRRMC -Antique province has been convened while the operation of the semirara coal mining was suspended, the NDRRMC said.