Weekend aftershocks jolt Central Mindanao

COTABATO CITY, Philippines — Four aftershocks jolted Central Mindanao over the weekend following the Oct. 16 magnitude 6.3 earthquake that hit the region.

Tulunan and nearby towns in North Cotabato and Kidapawan City, the capital of the province, were shaken by a magnitude 3.8 aftershock on Saturday and, subsequently, a stronger one on Sunday night.

The Sunday aftershocks were strongly felt in Sulop, Davao del Sur; Tulunan, North Cotabato; Koronadal City and nearby areas in the South Cotabato and Sarangani provinces.

The aftershocks caused panic among residents, sending many shoppers and moviegoers inside malls to run outside.

Regional personnel of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said Monday there have been more than 500 aftershocks after the Oct. 16 earthquake that shook Central Mindanao.

Yesterday, municipal legislators declared two more North Cotabato towns – M’lang and Tulunan – under a state of calamity.

The Sangguniang Bayan of Makilala, also in the same province, placed all constituent barangays under a state of calamity three days before due to damage to houses and other structures that displaced villagers, many of them now in makeshift shelters along farm-to-market roads.