Quake rocks Mindoro, Batangas and Metro Manila

MANILA, Philippines—Tremors from a moderate earthquake in Occidental Mindoro were felt as far away as Metro Manila and neighboring provinces on Thursday morning, state seismologists said.

The epicenter of the magnitude 5.3 quake was located in the town of Mamburao in Occidental Mindoro. It struck at 9:55 a.m. at a depth of 15 kilometers, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said.

The quake was felt at Intensity 3 in Pasay City  and at Intensity 2 in Quezon City and Malabon, Phivolcs researcher Karl Vincent Soriano said.

It was felt at Intensity 4 in Batangas City; Pinamalayan, Oriental Mindoro, and San Jose, Occidental Mindoro, he added.

Intensity 4 indicates the shaking is felt generally by people indoors and by some people outdoors. “Light sleepers are awakened. Vibration is felt like the passing of a heavy truck. Hanging objects swing considerably. Dinner plates, glasses, windows and doors rattle,” Phivolcs said.

Intensity 3 means the “vibration is felt like one passing of a light truck,” and some people experience dizziness and nausea, while Intensity 2 is felt only by a few individuals indoors, the agency said.

Phivolcs said an identical 5.3-magnitude quake hit Mati in Davao Oriental at 2:28 a.m. on Thursday.

Both quakes were tectonic in origin, indicating a sudden movement of the earth’s plates.