Earthquakes

“All around me, buildings were rocking and flames were shooting. As I ran, people on all sides were crying, praying and calling for help. I thought the end of the world had come,” said one earthquake survivor to Awake! magazine.
Just to listen to people tell about their experiences with earthquake and how they managed to escape the hands of death makes us really quiver, and even feel the tension and fear that they have felt. Surely, earthquakes are some of the most powerful natural phenomena to occur here on earth; too powerful that one major earthquake can kill lives, injure many, and cost insurmountable sum.
According to the World Book Encyclopedia, “earthquakes are among the most destructive and powerful forces in nature.” This is true for according to Awake!, “a severe earthquake may be 10,000 greater than that generated by the first atom bomb.”
Earthquakes occur when the earth’s surface shakes, causing strong movements among its rocky layers. There are two types of earthquake: the tectonic and volcanic. Tectonic earthquakes are caused by sudden displacement along the fault fissures in the solid, rigid layer of the earth. Volcanic earthquake, on the other hand, is caused by the lava or magma beneath active volcanoes. This type of earthquake usually happens after a volcano erupted.
According to Engr. Reynaldo Antioquia of the Philippine Volcanology and Seismology (PHILVOLCS), the Philippines is one of the nations belonging to the Pacific Ring of Fire. This means that our country is prone to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
The identified earthquake generators in the Philippines are: The Philippine Trench, East Luzon Trench, Manila Trench, the Collisional Zone between Palawan and Mindoro, Sulu Trench, Cotabato Trench, Davao Trench, Philippine Fault Zone, and the active faults of Lubang, Tablas, Casiguran, and Mindanao.
According to the PHILVOLCS, the Philippines experiences at least 5 to 7 earthquakes everyday. These earthquakes are caused by the northwestward movement of the Pacific Plate that presently pushes the Philippine Sea Plate However, these earthquakes are too weak to be felt by every one of us.
Some of the well documented earthquakes were the 8.3-magnitude earthquake that took place at the Negros Trench on Jan. 24, 1948. On the other hand, one of the most destructive earthquakes occurred last July 16, 1990 which ravaged Baguio City. The earthquake, which magnitude on the Richter scale recorded to be 7.7, killed 1, 600 and injured 5, 000 people.
According to the PHILVOLCS Roxas City Chapter, Capiz experienced an intensity 3 earthquake, at around 6: 25 pm of August 15, 2008.