By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

A 4.1 magnitude earthquake jolted several parts of Western Visayas (WV) around noon time yesterday.

Provincial Disaster Management Program Division (PDMPD) head Zeaphard Caelian said the earthquake was epicentered around 18 kilometers northeast of Sipalay City in Negros Occidental.

Caelian said the earthquake was tectonic in origin and had a depth of 18 kilometers.

Intensity III was felt in Iloilo City while Instrumental Intensity V was felt in Sipalay City; III in Bago City; and II in La Carlota City, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said.
The quake was also felt in Bacolod City, although it didn’t trigger any evacuations in the city’s high rise buildings.

Caelian said they are not expecting any aftershocks or damages caused by the earthquake.

He also assured that there is nothing to be alarmed with the tremor experienced yesterday, pointing out it was only part of the normal movement of the Negros Trench which is located in the said city and the town of Hinoba-an.

Last month, the area also experienced a swarm of small earthquakes with the strongest recorded at magnitude of 4.6.

Caelian already stated earlier that the series of tremors are natural, although he warned that such small tremors can also trigger landslides in rain-soaked mountainous areas./DGB, WDJ