A powerful 7.1-magnitude earthquake hit the Philippine island of Luzon on Wednesday (July 27)

It has severely damaged a hospital and buildings in the northern province and sent strong tremors through the capital Manila.

However, no serious injuries or deaths have yet been reported from the earthquake, which occurred about 11 km southeast of Dolores and at a shallow depth of 10 km.

The patients in a hospital in Abra province have been evacuated after the building partially collapsed following the earthquake, but no casualties have been reported, officials said.

“We are still experiencing the aftershocks. We have received reports of damage to homes. But there have been no casualties so far,” said Rowlin Villamor, mayor of Lagangilang town in Abra province.

“We don’t have electricity because it automatically cuts off due to the accident,” Mr Villamor told DZRH radio.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered the immediate dispatch of rescue and relief teams to Abra, and He will also fly is to Abra,his press secretary said Wednesday.

Abra, home to nearly 250,000 people.It is a landlocked province in the northern Philippines. Its deep valleys and steep hills are surrounded by rugged mountains.

Source- The Washington Post