A damaged ceiling at a shopping mall in General Santos City in South Cotabato, after the magnitude 7.2 earthquake. - AFP
MANILA: A magnitude-7.2 earthquake has hit southern Philippines, prompting evacuations and causing damage to buildings.
The tectonic earthquake’s epicentre was located west of Sarangani, Davao Occidental province at the nation’s south, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology. The tremor hit at 4:14pm local time Friday (Nov 17) and was felt in several surrounding provinces.
There is no threat of a tsunami following the quake, the institute said.
Patients were evacuated from a hospital in General Santos City, while workers fled offices in Davao City, according on ABS-CBN News’ Facebook posts.
Debris from the ceiling were strewn on the floor of a shopping mall in General Santos owned by SM Prime Holdings Inc., and a crane collapsed on a building under construction in Davao City, based on posts by state-run Radyo Pilipinas on X, the social media platform formerly called Twitter. - Bloomberg
