MANILA, Philippines — At least two people were killed after a powerful magnitude-7.4 earthquake struck off Davao Oriental on Friday, triggering regional tsunami warnings that were later lifted.

Davao Oriental 2nd District Representative Cheeno Miguel Almario said two fatalities had been recorded.

“One is an elderly person who was confined at the Davao Oriental Medical Center and suffered a cardiac arrest during the quake due to panic, while another is a 54-year-old woman who was hit by a falling wall and also died,” Almario said.

The Office of Civil Defense confirmed only one fatality — the woman who was struck by a falling hollow block in the mountain village of Calapagan, Lupon town, where a residential building also collapsed.

“I just talked to the mayor of the town, who confirmed the first casualty during the earthquake,” said Ednar Dayanghirang, Office of Civil Defense regional director.

Strong quake

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said the offshore quake, initially measured at magnitude 7.6 and later revised to 7.4, struck at 9:43 a.m. about 62 kilometers southeast of Manay, Davao Oriental.

The tectonic quake occurred at a shallow depth of 10 kilometers (6 miles), causing strong ground shaking across the southern Philippines.

“Destructive tsunami is expected with life-threatening wave heights” on the country’s east coast, Phivolcs reported. Coastal residents “are strongly advised to immediately evacuate to higher grounds or move farther inland,” it added.

Phivolcs said waves about one meter higher than normal tides could reach the shore between 9:43 a.m. and 11:43 a.m.

The OCD warned that tsunami waves could hit six nearby coastal provinces from Davao Oriental within two hours after the quake. Deputy Administrator Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro IV urged residents to “immediately evacuate to higher grounds until further notice.”

Boat owners were advised to secure their vessels and stay away from the waterfront, while those already at sea were told to remain in deep waters.

The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said waves up to three meters were possible in parts of the Philippines and smaller waves, up to one meter high, could reach Palau and Indonesia.

Indonesia’s Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency said minor tsunami waves were detected in North Sulawesi province, ranging from 3.5 to 17 centimeters (1.3 to 6.7 inches) in Melonguane, Beo, Essang and Ganalo in the Talaud Islands. People were warned to stay away from beaches and riverbanks.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Honolulu said hazardous waves were possible within 300 kilometers of the epicenter.

Local governments along the Davao Oriental coast ordered preemptive evacuations following the warning. In Davao City, where the quake was felt at Intensity V, classes were suspended, and some banks sent workers home as power was cut off in parts of the city.

Residents describe shaking

Police officer Dianne Lacorda said the province of Davao Oriental, which includes Manay, expects damage.

“Our tumblers on the table were moving and falling,” she said, adding power and communication lines have been cut and the authorities are currently unable to assess the potential damage in some areas.

Christine Sierte, a teacher in the town of Compostela near Manay, said she was in the middle of an online meeting when the violent shaking started.

“It was very slow at first then it got stronger,” she said. “That’s the longest time of my life. We weren’t able to walk out of the building immediately because the shaking was so strong.”

“The ceilings of some offices fell, but luckily no one was injured,” she said, though some of the school’s 1,000-odd students “suffered panic attacks and difficulty in breathing.”

Kath Cortez, a local journalist based in Davao City to the west of Manay, said the ground floor walls of her family’s house were showing small cracks.

“I was surprised by the strength. I had just woken up and was about to take a shower,” she said, adding members of her family ran out of the house.

Quake felt across Visayas

The powerful quake was also felt across several provinces in the Visayas, prompting precautionary measures in Iloilo, Cebu, Bohol, and nearby areas.

Phivolcs said that although the tremor’s origin was in Mindanao, its strong ground motion rippled across the Visayas, including Iloilo, Antique, Capiz, Negros Occidental, and Bohol.

In Iloilo City, Mayor Raisa Treñas ordered the immediate suspension of classes at all levels — both public and private — to ensure the safety of students and school personnel. The Office of the Building Official, City Engineer’s Office and Facility Conservation Office began structural inspections of City Hall and other government facilities before allowing employees and clients to enter.

Radisson Blu Photos by Jhunnex Napallacan

Residents across the city reported feeling the quake, with some offices and schools temporarily evacuating as a precaution. As of Friday afternoon, no reports of major structural damage or injuries had been recorded in Iloilo City or the rest of the province, according to the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office.

Provincial authorities also heightened monitoring of public infrastructure. The Iloilo Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office said it was coordinating with local governments to verify the quake’s effects in municipalities and to remind residents to remain vigilant.

Tremors from the earthquake were also felt in the City of Kabankalan at 9:48 a.m., prompting the immediate evacuation of students to designated open areas within the Kabankalan Catholic College campus.

Several local government units across Cebu also suspended classes and government work on Friday, October 10, after the magnitude 7.4 earthquake off the coast of Manay, Davao Oriental, was felt in parts of the Visayas, including Cebu.

In Bohol province, the earthquake prompted brief panic and precautionary evacuations. In Tagbilaran City, anxious parents rushed to schools to fetch their children, while in Guindulman town, classes were suspended and students were sent home as a safety measure.

At the Bohol Provincial Capitol, employees and guests attending the State of the Province Address of Governor Erico Aristotle Aumentado on the fourth floor were advised to vacate the building. After structural checks confirmed there was no visible damage, they were allowed to return inside.

Safety checks urged

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the potential damage was being assessed and that rescue teams and relief operations were being prepared and would be deployed when it was safe to do so.

The Department of Public Works and Highways–Western Visayas field offices were directed to assess key bridges and roads, while the Department of Education–Region VI urged school heads to conduct building safety checks before resuming face-to-face classes.

Phivolcs said it had not issued a tsunami warning for the Visayas but advised coastal communities to stay alert for possible aftershocks. The agency’s seismologists continued to monitor the situation.

Students at the Davao de Oro State College gathered in an open area after the strong earthquake that was felt across Mindanao and Western Visayas. PHOTOS COURTESY OF AFP

Local officials urged residents to avoid reentering damaged structures until engineers cleared them, to report visible cracks in homes and buildings, and to follow only verified updates from government channels.

The latest Philippine quake struck just 11 days after a 6.9-magnitude earthquake killed 74 people and destroyed or damaged about 72,000 houses in the central island of Cebu.

Earthquakes are a near-daily occurrence in the Philippines, which is situated on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an arc of intense seismic activity stretching from Japan through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin. /dm With reports from Faith Argosino, Germelina Lacorte, Charie Abarca, John Eric Mendoza, Joey A. Gabieta, Hazel Villa, Leo Udtohan, Pia Piquero, Associated Press and Agence France-Presse