Shallow quake jolts Ilocos Norte town

MANILA, Philippines — A shallow earthquake with a magnitude of 4.2 hit an Ilocos Norte town on Friday afternoon, state seismologists said.

The tectonic earthquake, which occurred 17 kilometers southwest of Adams town at 3:05 pm, had a shallow depth of eight kilometers, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).

Damages and aftershocks are unlikely after the quake, according to Phivolcs.

Phivolcs said intensity V (strong) were felt in Burgos, Pasuquin, Bacarra, City of Laoag, and Paoay, in Ilocos Norte; and intensity IV (moderately strong)at Sinait, and Cabugao in Ilocos Sur.

On the other hand, instrumental intensities were logged at Pasuquin, Ilocos Norte (intensity VI, very strong); Laoag City in Ilocos Norte (intensity IV, moderately strong); Vigan City, Ilocos Sur (intensity II, slightly felt) and intensity I (scarcely perceptible) in Gonzaga, Cagayan and Aringay, La Union.

Felt intensity is the ground shaking actually felt and reported by the people through the Phivolcs Earthquake Intensity Scale, while instrumental intensity was indicated by the ground shaking intensity measured by the intensity meters in and around the epicentral area.

The Philippines sits on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” where tectonic plates collide, causing frequent earthquakes and volcanic activity.

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