Philippines: Schools and colleges cancel classes after strong earthquake

Many schools across various Philippine cities have suspended classes amid earthquake panic in the country, according to local media reports. All classes in public and private schools and colleges in Davao City have reportedly been suspended.

General Santos City Mayor Ronnel Rivera has also reportedly announced a suspension of classes for all levels following the strong earthquake in the Philippines. Koronadal City Mayor Eliordo Ogena has also declared the suspension of classes on Thursday from pre-school to secondary levels in private and public schools.

Mayor Al David Uy has also suspended classes for all levels both private and public in the Island Garden City of Samal (IGACOS) and authorities will conduct an inspection of school buildings.

A strong and shallow earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.3 has struck the southern Philippines. The US Geological Survey says the quake was centered about 8 kilometers (5 miles) from Columbia in the Mindanao region. It had a depth of only 14 kilometers (8 miles). Shallow quakes tend to cause more damage than deeper ones.

The Philippines, one of the world's most disaster-prone countries, has frequent earthquakes and volcanic activity because it lies on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," a seismically active arc of volcanos and fault lines in the Pacific Basin. A magnitude 7.7 quake killed nearly 2,000 people in the northern Philippines in 1990.