Residents of Sangihe Islands Evacuate Following 7.7 Magnitude Earthquake

Manado (ANTARA) - A number of residents in the Sangihe Islands, North Sulawesi Province, have begun evacuating to highland areas after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake occurred off the coast of the southern Philippines on Monday morning.

“Many residents from Tidore, Tapuang, and coastal areas panicked due to the earthquake. They are now evacuating to Manganitu road, which is higher than the coastline, to avoid potential tsunami risks,” said Jufry Dalita, a local resident, when contacted by ANTARA on Monday.

The BMKG (Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency) recorded the earthquake’s epicentre at coordinates 5.80°N; 125.14°E, located in the sea approximately 244 km northwest of Karatung Island, North Sulawesi, at a depth of 47 km.

Jufry, who is also a civil servant within the Sangihe Islands Regency Government, urged residents to remain calm and avoid panic, advising those who need to evacuate to ensure the safety of their family members.

“The earthquake was very strongly felt in our island region, causing residents to rush out of their homes,” the man added.

The magnitude 7.7 earthquake occurred at 06:37:42 WIB in the South Mindanao coast area of the Philippines, caused by plate subduction.

“Observing the location of the epicentre and the depth of the hypocentre, the earthquake that occurred is a shallow earthquake resulting from plate subduction activity,” said Wijayanto, Director of Earthquakes and Tsunamis at BMKG, in a release shared via the ‘BMKG and Stakeholders’ communication group at 08:18 WITA in Manado.

Analysis of the source mechanism indicates that the earthquake involved a thrust fault movement.

The earthquake was also felt in Morotai City, North Halmahera, with an intensity scale of IV MMI. It was subsequently felt in North Gorontalo Regency with an intensity scale of III-IV MMI.

Furthermore, tremors were recorded in Batang Dua, Ternate, West Halmahera, Gorontalo, South Halmahera, East Halmahera, Parigi Moutong, Manado, Minahasa, Palu, Bitung, East Boltim, and Central Halmahera with an intensity scale of III MMI.