Magnitude 4.9 quake hits Camarines Sur, rouses South Luzon

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake hit Calabanga town in Camarines Sur on Thursday, November 30, 2023, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) says. Photo from Phivolcs

NAGA CITY — A magnitude 4.9 earthquake swayed Calabanga in Camarines Sur and woke up residents in some areas in South Luzon early Thursday.

In a bulletin, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said the tremor struck at 3:18 a.m. It was of tectonic origin.

Phivolcs also said the quake was detected seven kilometers east of Calabanga and had a depth of focus of four kilometers.

Based on the agency’s scales, the temblor logged Instrumental Intensity VI in Tinambac, Camarines Sur; Instrumental Intensity IV in Pili, Camarines Sur; Instrumental Intensity III in Pasacao, Camarines Sur; Instrumental Intensity II in Guinayangan, Quezon; and Instrumental Intensity I in Tabaco in Albay, Jose Panganiban in Camarines Norte, and Polillo in Quezon.

Residents here said they heard loud rumbling preceding the earthquake. They also described the temblor as “brief but strong enough to rattle the windows and wake up the pets.”

Phivolcs said the earthquake was felt at Intensity V in Tinambac, Camarines Sur; Intensity IV in Naga, Calamigan, and Calabanga in Camarines Sur; Intensity III in Iriga City, Bula, and Presentacion in Camarines Sur and Lopez town in Quezon; Intensity II in the towns of Goa and Cabusao in Camarines Sur, and Mercedes, Daet, and Basud towns in Camarines Norte, as well as in Guinayangan, Quezon.

No aftershocks were anticipated to occur but damage to infrastructure may be expected from this quake, according to state seismologists.

RELATED STORIES

Magnitude 4.3 earthquake shakes Surigao del Sur

Magnitude 4 earthquake hits Occidental Mindoro