Strong 6-magnitude earthquake shakes Philippines

ALBAWABA - A 6-magnitude earthquake hit the central Philippine island of Samar at 2:09 p.m. local time (0609 GMT) on Monday, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

The earthquake struck at a depth of 73.3 kilometres, about nine kilometres away from the province's coastal town of San Julian, USGS added.

A local police officer told AFP the quake had been "strong and sudden". The policeman mentioned that until this moment, there were no immediate reports of injury.

"Here at the police station, one of the beams where our roof was attached was broken ... I saw some furniture moving," he noted.

The Philippine seismology agency, Phivolcs, warned that damage and subsequent aftershocks are expected after the strong earthquake.