Authorities in Davao city, near the earthquake’s epicentre, say they will activate the red alert, the BBC reports. This is the highest level of disaster response which has been triggered to deal with the impact of the earthquake.

“It ensures full staffing of response agencies such as military, fire protection, police, and immediate interagency coordination,” civil defence spokesperon Carlo Alexie Puerto told the broadcaster.

He added that the extent of damage remains unclear, as authorities are “still waiting for validated information from our teams in the field.”