MANILA — Malacañang has sent prayers to victims of the magnitude-6.7 earthquake, which hit the northern island of Hokkaido, Japan on Thursday morning and triggered landslides and power outages.
“Our prayers to the people of Japan who were affected by a powerful magnitude 6.7 earthquake that struck their northern region this morning,” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a press statement.
Roque assured that the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is monitoring the situation and staying in touch with the leaders of the Filipino community in Hokkaido to check on the condition of Filipinos there and ensure their safety.
Various reports showed that at least one person was killed and at least 32 others were missing after the 6.7 magnitude quake.
Electricity was cut off after Hokkaido Electric Power Co. conducted an emergency shutdown following the quake. Meanwhile, trains across the island were also stopped.
The Japan Meteorological Agency said the quake did not pose tsunami risk.
Japan is prone to quake as it is situated on the vulnerable quake-hit zone, the “Pacific Ring of Fire.”
The most powerful earthquake recorded in Japan, with a 9.0 magnitude, struck the country on March 11, 2011. It set off a tsunami that killed nearly 20,000 people. (Azer Parrocha/PNA)
