The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) officially cancelled its tsunami alert at 1:43 p.m. on Friday following the magnitude-7.4 earthquake in Manay, Davao Oriental earlier this morning.
The warning covered the coastal communities in the provinces of Davao Oriental, Dinagat Islands, Surigao del Norte, Surigao del Sur, Leyte, Southern Leyte and Eastern Samar, where evacuation orders were enforced amid risks of sea level disturbance.
Based on Phivolcs’ sea level monitoring, tsunami waves about 30 centimeters high were observed at 10:20 a.m. in Tandag, Surigao del Sur. The threat of life-threatening tsunamis has since passed.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center also lifted its tsunami alert for the Philippines, Palau and Indonesia on Friday, hours after the powerful offshore tremor struck off the southern Philippines.
“There is no longer a tsunami threat from this earthquake,” it said in an advisory.
The state seismic agency said the tremor was caused by the movement of the Philippine Trench. The Phivolcs said it has so far recorded over 200 aftershocks as of early Friday afternoon in light of the quake.
Damage and impact assessments continue with several national government agencies on high alert for disaster response operations.
