Phivolcs allays fear of possible tsunami

MANILA, Philippines - The chief of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) allayed fears of a possible tsunami hitting the country following the 7.6 undersea earthquake that hit the Andaman Islands, India before dawn yesterday.

In an interview, Phivolcs director Renato Solidum said the country is protected from tsunami by several islands around its territory.

He said the landmasses that surround the Philippines include Sumatra in Indonesia and the Malaysian peninsula.

Meanwhile, a 6.4 magnitude quake also struck central Japan early yesterday morning.

Phivolcs said it has not issued tsunami alert following the quakes.

“There was no tsunami threat to the Philippines from both quakes, hence no alerts were given,” Solidum said in a text message to The STAR.

Tsunamis are tidal waves generated by underwater earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, meteor impacts or landslides.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii issued a tsunami watch for Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Myanmar and Thailand, saying the earthquake was strong enough to produce a tsunami along coastlines within 1,000 kms of its epicenter.

However, it cancelled the warning a few hours later “as sea levels indicated that a significant tsunami was not generated.”

The powerful quake struck at 7:55 p.m. Monday (3:55 a.m. Manila time) with its epicenter traced at 260 kilometers north of Port Blair, Andaman Islands, India, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said.

The epicenter of the quake was also located some 365 kms south-southwest of Pathein (Bassein), Myanmar; 825 kms west of Bangkok, Thailand; and 2295 kms southeast of New Delhi, India.

Solidum said the tsunami that followed the quake that hit the Indian Ocean in 2004 did not affect the country.

On Dec. 26, 2004, an earthquake at sea generated a massive tsunami that hit the shores along the Indian Ocean, leaving 230,000 people, mostly in Indonesia, dead.

The second quake hit at 05:07 a.m. in the Pacific Ocean about 170 kms southwest of Tokyo at a depth of 26.8 kms, according to the USGS.

The Department of Foreign Affairs said no Filipinos were reported hurt or killed so far in the earthquake that jolted Tokyo and nearby areas before dawn yesterday, according to an official of the Philippine embassy in Japan.

“Based on the reports, there are no casualties as of yet. We will keep the public aware kung mayroon mang nasaktan (if anyone is reported hurt),” said third secretary and vice consul Hans Siriban in an interview.