Tsunami alert up in 20 provinces

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) issued a tsunami alert in 20 provinces after a massive 8.3-magnitude earthquake struck Chile Thursday morning.

The large and shallow earthquake occurred near the coast of Chile at around 6:55 a.m. Thursday.

Phivolcs said an earthquake of this size has the potential to generate a destructive tsunami that can strike coastlines in the region near the epicenter within minutes to hours.

Most destructive tsunamis are generated from large, shallow earthquakes with an epicenter or fault line near or on the ocean floor.

Phivolcs advised residents in the eastern coast of the country, namely: Batanes group of islands, Sorsogon, Cagayan, Northern Samar, Ilocos Norte, Eastern Samar, Isabela, Leyte, Quezon, Southern Leyte, Aurora, Surigao del Norte, Camarines Norte, Surigao del Sur, Camarines Sur, Davao Oriental, Albay, Davao del Sur, Catanduanes, and Davao Occidental to “wait and listen” for updates.

Phivolcs Director Dr. Renato Solidum said tsunami waves at least 0.3 meters or less than a ruler could reach the eastern coastline of the country.

According to Phivolcs, a tsunami is a series of sea waves commonly generated by under-the-sea earthquakes and whose heights could be greater than five meters.

It is erroneously called tidal waves and sometimes mistakenly associated with storm surges, it added.

A powerful 8.8-magnitude earthquake also occurred off the coast of Chile on February 27, 2010, which ranked as the fifth largest earthquake ever to be recorded by a seismograph.