TACLOBAN CITY – Two tectonic earthquakes struck Leyte and Eastern Samar on Monday morning, Oct. 12, with the stronger magnitude 3.9 tremor felt at Intensity IV in Abuyog and Mahaplag, Leyte, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).
The first earthquake, measuring magnitude 3.4, occurred at 6:24 a.m. near General MacArthur, Eastern Samar, while the second, a magnitude 3.9 earthquake, struck near Abuyog, Leyte, at 9:23 a.m.
In its Earthquake Information No. 1, Phivolcs said the magnitude 3.4 earthquake in Eastern Samar had a depth of 24 kilometers, with its epicenter located five kilometers north, six degrees east of General MacArthur.
The agency reported no expected damage and no expected aftershocks from the Eastern Samar earthquake.
The stronger tremor in Leyte was recorded at a depth of 10 kilometers, with its epicenter located six kilometers south, 83 degrees west of Abuyog.
Phivolcs reported Intensity IV shaking in Abuyog and Mahaplag, Intensity III in Javier, and Intensity II in Baybay City. An instrumental intensity of I was also recorded in Abuyog.
Intensity IV is generally associated with strong shaking that may be felt by most people indoors and some people outdoors, while Intensity III is described as weak to moderately noticeable shaking. Intensity II is considered slightly felt, particularly by people in buildings and those at rest.
The two earthquakes were classified as tectonic, meaning they resulted from movement within the Earth’s crust. Their occurrence in separate locations does not, by itself, establish that the two events were related.
Eastern Visayas is exposed to seismic activity because of its proximity to active faults and tectonic structures.
Phivolcs said it does not expect any damage to the separate jolts.
(JOEY A. GABIETA)
