Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 22) – The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) has warned Filipinos anew against fake earthquake and tsunami information that started circulating on social media, claiming a possible high-magnitude quake in Cagayan de Oro, and Tagoloan River.
The agency issued an advisory on Thursday after some individuals were reported to be spreading false information — even quoting the PHIVOLCS regional director — about the possibility of a 7.2 earthquake in Cagayan de Oro and Tagoloan River due to the active fault lines in the area.
It also claimed the quake could trigger a tsunami and asked the public to look for a possible evacuation route.
Phivolcs debunked the false information, saying there is no technology yet that could exactly predict the occurrence of an earthquake or tsunami.
“Ang lindol ay maaaring maganap sa mga lugar na dinadaanan ng active faults at malalapit sa mga trench katulad ng Mindanao. Ngunit wala pang teknolohiya sa buong mundo ang makapagsasabi kung kelan at saan ito eksaktong mangyayari,” the agency stated in its advisory.
[Translation: Earthquakes may occur in places where active faults are located, and those near trenches just like Mindanao. However, no existing technology in the world yet can predict when and where it will exactly happen.]
Phivolcs has urged the public to stop spreading unfounded information, and be equipped with the right knowledge to be safe from the danger of strong quakes.
It also advised them to visit the DOST-PHIVOLCS website, Facebook, and Twitter pages for confirmed information.
Nais namin ipabatid sa publiko na hindi nanggaling sa DOST-PHIVOLCS ang mensahe na ito. Hinihikayat ang mga nakatanggap ng mensahe na HUWAG IPAKALAT ITO SA TEXT AT INTERNET.
Importanteng magkaroon ng tamang kaalaman at sapat na paghahanda upang maging ligtas.#HandaAngMayAlam pic.twitter.com/n09FWDc3VC
— PHIVOLCS-DOST (@phivolcs_dost) April 21, 2022
