“We expect damage,” said seismologist Charm Villamil. The earthquake struck the municipality of Dolores, in the province of Abra, at 10:59 PM local time (4:59 PM Belgian time). She clarified that the impact on the buildings will depend on their solidity and the characteristics of the soils. The earthquake was felt as far as the Philippine capital Manila, more than 330 kilometers to the south.
In July, a magnitude 7 earthquake caused landslides in this mountainous region, killing 11 people. The archipelago is located in the so-called “Pacific Ring of Fire”, a horseshoe-shaped zone where about 90 percent of all earthquakes occur. The Civil Defense regularly organizes earthquake exercises on active fault lines of the country.