MANILA (Reuters) -Two earthquakes jolted the Philippines several hours apart on Thursday, authorities said, but there were no immediate reports of injuries or major damage.
A magnitude 5.8 quake occurred off the town of San Francisco in Southern Leyte province in the central region of Visayas at 07:39 a.m (2339 GMT), according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS).
A magnitude 5.4 earthquake followed four hours later that hit Siocon town in the southern Mindanao region.
The agency had recorded at least 68 aftershocks from the Visayas tremor. There were no immediate reports of injuries from either tremor.
San Francisco police chief Barnie Catig said the earthquake in the town was brief but strong.
“Some of the picture frames in our shelves fell off,” Catig said by phone.
No one was injured but at least 18 houses and government buildings had minor damage, Catig said. At least one highway had fissures from the tremor but remained passable, he said.
“We’re still conducting a full assessment,” Catig said.
Earthquakes are common in the Philippines, which is located in the Pacific Ocean’s “Ring of Fire”, where volcanic activity and earthquakes frequently occur.
(Reporting by Mikhail Flores; Editing by Kim Coghill and Stephen Coates)
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