More than 5,200 aftershocks have struck Northern Cebu and nearby areas following the magnitude 6.9 offshore earthquake that hit on Sept. 30, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).
As of 12 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 4, Phivolcs said a total of 5,228 aftershocks have been recorded by its monitoring instruments. Of these, 1,023 have been plotted, while 22 were reported felt by communities.
The agency said the strongest aftershock so far registered magnitude 5.1, while most were small tremors ranging from magnitude 1.0 to 3.0.
Phivolcs noted that the reference station used in monitoring the seismic sequence is the MECP station in Medellin, Cebu.
The agency reiterated that aftershocks are expected to continue in the coming days but assured that most would be too weak to be felt by the public.
On Sept. 30, a powerful magnitude 6.9 earthquake jolted Cebu and nearby provinces at 9:59 p.m., with its epicenter traced offshore Northern Cebu.
The quake, tectonic in origin, had a shallow depth of five kilometers, making it strongly felt across the Visayas and parts of Mindanao and Bicol.
Earlier, Phivolcs said damage and aftershocks were expected due to the strength and depth of the tremor. (Jel Santos)
