Magnitude 5.5 earthquake hits Batangas
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 4) — The magnitude 5.5 earthquake which hit Batangas on Tuesday evening caused damage in churches and commercial establishments.
The tremor was also felt in parts of Metro Manila and south Luzon.
Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) Director Renato Solidum said the temblor hit 7km northwest of Tingloy town at 8:58 p.m.
There was no threat of a tsunami but aftershocks were expected, Solidum said.
"We don't expect significant damage in many areas but we need to make sure that the other areas near the epicenter would report there are slight damages. At this stage, the highest intensity reported so far is intensity VI in Batangas City, and the rest will be much lower," Solidum told CNN Philippines.
As of 7:51 a.m. Wednesday, Phivolcs reported the following earthquake intensities:
Intensity VI - Batangas City
Intensity V - Malvar and Calatagan, Batangas
Intensity IV - Makati City; Obando, Bulacan; Silang, Noveleta, Imus and Indang, Cavite; Calamba, Laguna; Sta. Ana, Manila; Valenzuela City; Tagaytay City; Cuenca, Batangas
Intensity III - Mandaluyong City; Quezon City; Gen. Trias, & Dasmariñas, Cavite ; Pasay City; Lucena City; Sta. Rosa, Laguna
Intensity II - Talisay, Batangas; Abra De Ilog, Occidental Mindoro; Pasig City; Meycauayan, Bulacan
Meanwhile, netizens immediately flooded social media with tweets and reports of the earthquake, with some even relating it to international band Coldplay's concert.
We felt the earthquake in Tagaytay, it was strong our house was shaking got the dogs stop, hold, duck then move to a safe place #earthquake
— U-gin (@ervicta) April 4, 2017
Drop, Cover and Hold on guys! Keep in mind during #earthquake
— TheGreatestFanGirl (@arivenm12) April 4, 2017
So #ColdplayManila is so loud that the entire manila felt the ground shook #earthquake
— Dhawell (@dhawellskie) April 4, 2017
(Story updated 11:50 a.m. of April 5 to reflect revised Phivolcs measurement of the quake's magnitude.)
