MANILA: A strong 6.5 magnitude quake shook the southern Philippines on Friday, the United States Geological Survey said. The quake struck at a depth of 27 kilometres (around 17 miles) in Mindanao, more than 700 kilometres southeast of the capital Manila, the USGS said.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said there was no tsunami threat from the quake.
The Philippine seismological office said the quake registered at 6.7 with an epicentre 14 kilometres north of the southern city of Surigao.
The area’s police chief Senior Superintendent Anthony Maghari told radio station DZMM that he saw a school house had collapsed and that many other buildings had developed cracks.
Many of the residents in the city had fled to higher ground for fear of a possible tsunami, he said.
He added the city was suffering from a power outage and that police were checking for any casualties.
