Magnitude 6,6 earthquake strikes off coast of Viga, Philippines

An earthquake of magnitude 6,6 struck off the coast of Viga in eastern Philippines on Tuesday, triggering a tsunami warning from the state seismology agency.

The quake's epicenter was about 120 km (74 miles) east of Viga and was at a depth of 45 km, the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said separately. The EMSC had initially estimated a quake magnitude of 6.3.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) urged people living near the shoreline of provinces affected to move further inland, warning they could experience wave heights of less than one meter above normal tides and that these could be higher in enclosed bays and straits.

"This is at sea. We have an advisory, a minor sea level disturbance," Teresito Bacolcol, officer in charge at the state seismology agency, told DZMM radio.

"The public is advised to be on alert for unusual wave. People are advised to stay away from the beach," Bacolcol said, adding there had been no reports of casualties or damage so far.