Strong quake jolts eastern Philippines, no damage reported

MANILA: A strong 6.1-magnitude earthquake was detected off the eastern Philippines Saturday, but there were no immediate reports of any damage or casualties, authorities said. The epicentre of the quake — which struck at 2:19 pm local time (0619 GMT) — was about 310 kilometres (190 miles) east of the capital Manila in the Philippine Sea, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology. The US Geological Survey reported that the earthquake was 6.1-magnitude, but Philippine authorities said it was 5.9-magnitude. The USGS said the epicentre was at a depth of 17.9 km. Local authorities in areas close to the epicentre said the tremors were not strong enough to cause serious damage.