Strong quake injures dozens, shuts north Philippine airport

A strong earthquake rocked a large swath of the northern Philippines injuring at least 36 people and forcing the closure of an international airport and the evacuation of patients in a hospital officials said on WednesdayThe Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said Tuesday nights magnitude 64 quake which was set off by movement of a local fault was centred 9 kilometres 5 miles northwest of Lagayan town in Abra province at a depth of 11 kilometres 7 milesThe US Tsunami Warning System said no warning or advisory was issuedThe quake was felt across a wide area of the main northern Luzon region including in some parts of metropolitan Manila more than 400 kilometers 250 miles south of AbraAt least 10 people received mostly minor injuries in Abra mainly from falling debris and 26 others were injured in Ilocos Norte the home province of President Ferdinand Marcos JrThe international airport in Ilocos Nortes capital city of Laoag was closed on Wednesday due to damage from the quake and at least two domestic flights were cancelled officials saidAlso Read NIA questions Punjabi singer Afsana Khan in gangsterterror nexus caseIn Batac city also in Ilocos Norte patients were moved out of the provinces largest hospital after parts of the ceiling in the intensive care unit fell as the building swayed Medical consultation services at the hospital were suspendedSchool classes in the province were halted while engineers assessed damage to buildings officials saidMarcos Jr said authorities were inspecting roads and buildings Most people are asking for tents because theyre afraid to go back to their houses because if these have been weakened and an aftershock hits they may get hurt he said at a news conference in ManilaMore than 400 aftershocks have been detected but only a few were felt by people officials saidIn the town of La Paz in Abra a centuryold Christian church was damaged with parts of its belfry collapsing and some walls cracked littering the churchs grassy yard with debris officials saidAt least two towns in Cagayan province lost electricity due to damaged power lines A number of bridges and roads in outlying provinces were damagedIn July a magnitude 7 earthquake set off landslides and damaged buildings in Abra and other northern provinces killing at least five people and injuring dozensIn 1990 a magnitude 77 quake killed nearly 2000 people in the northern Philippines and wrought extensive damage including in ManilaThe Philippine archipelago lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire a region along most of the Pacific Ocean rim where many volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur making the Southeast Asian nation one of the worlds most disasterproneThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever