Quakes cause panic, cut power

“Outpatients” get new meaning at Batangas Medical Center postquake. —KRISTINE DE VERA/CONTRIBUTOR

SAN PEDRO CITY — A series of strong earthquakes struck Batangas province on Saturday, sending panicked people to flee packed malls and establishments as well as triggering power outages.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said three quakes were recorded near the towns of Mabini and San Luis within a short span of 30 minutes from 3 p.m., with the strongest felt at magnitude 6.

This was followed by three weaker quakes with  magnitudes  3.5 to 4.7 in the next two hours in the same general area.

The United States Geological Service had varying readings with the strongest at magnitude 5.9.

Phivolcs head Renato Solidum said the event was called an “earthquake swarm” and was tectonic in origin caused by the movement of a local fault. He ruled out a tsunami alert.

The first two quakes were stronger than the 5.5-magnitude temblor that shook the island of Tingloy, also in Batangas, on Tuesday.

“There is no danger of tsunami, but with intensity 7, we expect damages,” said Jeffrey Perez, a Phivolcs scientist. “We’re expecting cracks on walls, houses, roads (and) fallen furniture.”

He said the “swarm” could have been caused by boulders beneath the ground that were still moving from the previous quake while trying to return to a normal state.

“The whole country has a lot of local faults that generate moderate to strong earthquakes,” Perez said.

In Malacañang, presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella called for calm, but urged the public to remain vigilant and alert.

The quakes were felt in varying intensities in the provinces of Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon as well as in Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan

Power went out while hospitals were forced to evacuate their patients, less than a week after the Tingloy quake jolted the region.

Calabarzon Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (DRRMC) spokesperson Georgina Garcia said they were particularly looking into possible damages in Batangas and Laguna.

‘Duck, cover, hold’

“Did you apply DCH (duck, cover, hold)? If not, you’re not prepared for a 6 and above magnitude,” Henry Buzar, coordinator of Quezon province disaster management office posted on his Facebook page, stressing the importance of the past earthquake drills.

In Lucena City, people rushed out of two malls but no untoward incidents were reported in Quezon, according to Buzar.

In Batangas, some employees were sent home while customers were seen scrambling out of coffee shops, burger joints and restaurants.

In Laguna, power was temporarily cut in the towns of Sta. Cruz and Los Baños and in Calamba City.

Rommel Palacol of the Laguna Action Center said patients at the Laguna Doctors’ Hospital in Sta. Cruz were taken out in an open field as engineers inspected the medical facility.

“The earthquake also left some cracks on our office building,” Palacol said from the Laguna capitol building.

In Tagaytay City, Cavite, municipal disaster management officer Clyde Yayong said the quake was felt in the tourist city at intensity 5. The shaking was also felt as far as Odiongan town in Romblon, according to local nurse Risa Falculan.

Quoting the Philippine Coast Guard, the Office of Civil Defense in Batangas posted a public advisory on its Facebook that “all trips to Batangas-Mindoro and Mindoro-Batangas were temporarily suspended.”

In town of  Mabini in Batangas, buildings in Camp Netanya Resort and Spa were chipped. The management of the establishment posted online photos showing parked cars damaged by concrete walls chipped from its buildings.

Lito Castro, Batangas disaster management and risk reduction officer, said the Basilica of Immaculate Conception in Batangas City suffered minor damage.

“Just a small portion of the church,” he said in a phone interview.

He said they have yet to receive damage reports from Mabini town.

Georgina Garcia, public information officer of Calabarzon-DRRMC, said some residential houses collapsed in Mabini, while some commercial buildings also sustained varying degrees of damage.

“A market was also reported to have collapsed. And there are cracks on some of the roads,” she said by phone, but stressed there were no immediate casualty reports.

SM Batangas was also shut down, after all customers were safely evacuated from the mall.

Batangas Gov. Hermilando “Dodo” Mandanas said five houses in Barangay Majuben in Mabini were destroyed while fresh damage was noted in the St. Martin de Tours Basilica or Taal Basilica. The façade of the basilica in Taal town was also chipped by the previous 5.5-magnitude earthquake.

Mandanas also said residents were evacuated in Taal and landslides rendered some roads impassable in Agoncillo and Batangas City. Students evacuated the Main Library in the University of the Philippines Los Baños campus in Laguna province.

“The [University Police Force and members of the Community Support Brigade] are also monitoring all buildings where students are now,” said Dr. Serlie Jamias, vice chancellor for community affairs. —WITH REPORTS FROM JAYMEE T. GAMIL, LEILA B. SALAVERRIA, KIMMY BARAOIDAN AND MADONNA VIROLA