A total of 213 aftershocks have been recorded following the magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck off Davao Oriental, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said Friday.
According to Phivolcs, these aftershocks-recorded in 41 different areas-occurred as of 1 p.m., just a few hours after the main tremor at 9:43 a.m.
The number immediately rose to 213 barely an hour later at 1:50 p.m.
While the aftershocks ranged from magnitude 1.3 to 5.8, Phivolcs Director Teresito Bacolcol said at a press conference that the strongest aftershock could reach magnitude 6.4.
‘We won’t be surprised if there’s a magnitude 6.4, but hopefully it won’t get that high,’ he said.
Asked how long the aftershocks could continue, Bacolcol said they may persist for several weeks.
‘The aftershocks will normally last for several days to several weeks,’ he added./mcm /mr