Philippines Rocked by Strong Temblor

A massive 6.1 magnitude earthquake has struck the southern Philippines, the US Geological Survey said. The quake hit the east coast of the island of Mindanao at 8.16 a.m. BST (3.15 p.m. local time), the Express reported. The epicenter, with a depth of 10 kilometers was located about 95 kilometers from the Davao City, the main harbor of the island. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said Davao City, Mati City and Davao Oriental were the towns, all located on Mindanao, which felt the earthquake the most. About 22 million people live on the island. Davao City, the biggest city on Mindanao, is home to more than 1.6 million residents. Phivolcs added the earthquake was of tectonic nature, meaning it was induced by the movement of magma lying beneath the surface of the earth. USGS earlier put the quake at a strength of 6.4. There were no immediate reports of any casualties or damage caused by the quake, according to Reuters.