Davao oriental: A powerful 7.5-magnitude undersea earthquake struck Davao Oriental province in southern Philippines early Friday, prompting the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) to issue a tsunami warning for coastal areas in Mindanao.
According to Jordan News Agency, the quake occurred at 9:43 a.m. local time (01:43 GMT) at a depth of 20 kilometers, with the epicenter located about 44 kilometers northeast of the municipality of Manay, Xinhua News Agency reported.
The institute strongly advised residents of coastal communities to immediately move to higher ground and stay away from the shore, warning that dangerous tsunami waves exceeding one meter in height could hit areas near the epicenter within minutes to several hours.
The tsunami advisory noted that "these waves may persist for several hours" and could be "more than one meter above normal tide levels, with potentially higher surges in bays and narrow coastal inlets."