Major earthquake rattles Manila

A major earthquake rattled the Philippine capital Manila on Friday night, and there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage so far, said the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.

The quake, measured at 6.2 degrees on Richter scale, occurred at around 10:35 p.m. local time (1435 GMT) and lasted for about one minute. The jolt was initially soft but progressed into brief wild swings.

The epicenter of the quake was located west of Tagaytay City, south to Manila, said the institute in a bulletin report.

The quake was tectonic, and the possible source was deformationof subducted slab along Manila trench, the report said.

The highest intensity of 5 was recorded in Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro in the northern Philippine island of Luzon.

There was brownout in part of Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

Many residents of high condominium buildings came out to the street in panic, and there were traffic jams in Metro Manila's major thoroughfares as vehicles stopped in the middle of the roads.

Source: Xinhua