Magnitude 7.5 earthquake hits southern Philippines

MANILA - An offshore earthquake with a magnitude of 7.5 struck Davao Oriental province in the southern Philippines on Friday morning, prompting the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology to issue a tsunami warning for coastal areas in Mindanao.

In a report, the institute said that the quake, which occurred at 9:43 am local time (0143 GMT), struck at a depth of 20 kilometers, approximately 44 kilometers northeast of the municipality of Manay.

The institute initially reported the earthquake's magnitude as 7.6.

The institute also strongly advised residents in coastal communities to immediately move to higher ground and stay away from the shore, warning that hazardous tsunami waves of more than 1 meter may impact areas near the epicenter within minutes to hours.

"These waves may continue for hours," said the tsunami warning, adding that they may be "more than 1 meter above the normal tides and may be higher on enclosed bays and straits".