Strong earthquake in the capital of the Philippines

A magnitude 6 quake struck the Philippines' capital Manila, causing many office workers to rush to the streets, witnesses and seismologists said.

Seismic seismic occurred at 12h27 noon 27/11 (ie 11h27 hours VN), the epicenter was 195km northwest of Manila, at a depth of 62.5km, US Geological Survey said. The Philippines Volcanic and Seismic Institute (Phivolcs) said the earthquake was only about 4.2 on the Richter scale.

(Photo: CNA) A 6-magnitude earthquake can destroy buildings but there are no reports of damage or casualties. According to Phivolcs, it can be felt in a large area in Luzon, the main island of the Philippines.

The news of the radio stations said that some buildings in Manila were empty because people ran out when the building began to shake.

A power line caught fire near Manila's town hall but no one was injured. The rail signal system in the Philippine capital also stopped working for a short time. Reporters were also among the group of people who fled the Malacanang presidential palace when President Arroyo conducted a cabinet meeting on the second floor. The cabinet meeting was uninterrupted because of the earthquake, officials said.

"It is not very strong , " said Jane Punongbayan, a seismologist at Phivolcs. "At this shock level it will be difficult to cause a strong aftershock."

The Philippines often suffers from earthquakes but most tremors are small and do not cause great harm.

Hoai Linh