MANILA, Philippines — Back-to-back earthquakes cracked small buildings and blocked roads with minor landslides Saturday in a Philippine resort province south of Manila where jittery tourists left and patients were evacuated from a hospital during aftershocks.
Officials said an earthquake with a magnitude of 5.6 struck near Mabini town in Batangas province at midafternoon, followed shortly by a magnitude 6 quake, prompting many people to rush out of homes and beach resorts. The quakes were felt in outlying regions, including in Manila, the capital, where people rushed out of some buildings and hotels in a panic as the ground shook and chandeliers swayed.
“Our tourists left out of fear they may be affected by the earthquakes,” Mayor Noel Luistro of Mabini, which is popular for diving and snorkeling, told DZMM radio network. “I need to declare a state of calamity.”