Strong quake jolts Southern Leyte

A 5.5 magnitude earthquake knocked out power and water lines, destroyed a bridge and damaged a school in Southern Leyte yesterday, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) said.

The quake, which struck at 11:10 p.m. Thursday, caused a five-hour power outage and broke water pipes, halting water supply in the town of Hinunangan, located near the quake’s epicenter on the southern end of Leyte island.

A major bridge to the town collapsed along with the concrete wall of a school, the OCD said, adding that the town hall and church also suffered cracks.

There were no reports of any casualties in the quake felt at Intensity 6 in Hinunangan; Intensity 5 in St. Bernard town where a massive landslide buried an entire village last year, killing hundreds of people; and Intensity 4 in Sogod town, volcanologists said.

The quake was also felt at Intensity 2 in Cebu City. At least 30 aftershocks were recorded, two of them felt within five minutes after the quake.– Helen Flores, AFP