PHIVOLCS confirms: Strong Monday quake was an aftershock

State seismologists confirmed that the strong 5.4 tremor felt in Leyte on Monday morning was an aftershock from the magnitude 6.5 earthquake last Thursday.

"Yung magnitude 5.4 kanina ay inaasahan po naming mangyari. Lahat po ng aftershock ay lindol. Ang mga lindol, kapag ang pinaggalingan at kasunod niya na malaking earthquake, in the same area, same fault ang kumilos, ay aftershock po yun," PHIVOLCS Dir. Renato Solidum explained in an interview on DZBB.

Solidum, who briefed Ormoc City Mayor Richard Gomez on this phenomenon on Sunday, said that they are not discounting the possibility of another aftershock of this magnitude.

"Hindi naman po ganung aftershock. Karamihan po ng aftershock ay maliliit pero hindi po natin inaalis yun. Kaya po sinasabi natin sa mga LGUs na hindi lang maliliit 'yan, paminsa-minsan malalaki tulad po ng nangyari kanina," he said.

Apart from aftershocks, there is also a possibility of earthquakes in the area where the epicenter of the original quake was felt.

"Hindi pa po talaga tapos. Pangalawa dun sa epicenter area na nandun yung fault, matatarik din po yun. Ibig pong sabihin, maliban sa earthquake, may potential landslide during the earthquake or landslide during heavy rain," Solidum said. "Hindi ibig sabihin na tapos na yung lindol, tapos na yung problema."

Citing the 2006 Guinsaugon landslide in St. Bernard, Southern Leyte, Solidum said even a moderately-sized earthquake can result in serious landslides after days of rain.

"Basta umulan at malambot na yung lupa, kahit po maliit lang yung lindol ay pwede nang magka landslide," he said.

Solidum added that several barangays directly above the fault line in Ormoc City felt a localized magnitude 8 earthquake on the day of the 6.5 quake in Leyte.

"Merong localized intensity 8 na nangyari nung Thursday. Ito po yung sa Brgy. Tongonan at ilang barangay na nasa fault mismo kasi yung mga tao doon, gusto tumayo, bumuwal, at yung nakatayo bumubuwal, so intensity 8 po yun," he said.

At least two people were killed and 72 people were injured in the magnitude 6.5 earthquake that hit the region on Thursday afternoon. — TJD, GMA News