Earthquake in the Philippines: death toll rises to 15

The death toll after the devastating earthquake in the north of the Philippines has risen to 15. Another 24 people are still missing, according to official figures.

Among other things, on Monday in the city of Porac north of the capital Manila, a four-storey building collapsed, in which there was also a supermarket. Helpers continued to rescue people trapped under rubble.

The epicenter of the quake of magnitude 6.1 was in the city of Castillejos in the province of Zambales, as the earthquake station Phivolcs announced in Quezon City. Since the quake, about 400 aftershocks have been recorded.

The strong quake was reportedly felt throughout the Greater Region around the Philippine capital, where people fled their offices and business buildings. A tweet shows how the skyscrapers near Manila staggered by the earthquake:

Buildings swaying in Manila just now Scary, but that means they're built to withstand earthquakes like this! #earthquake #earthquakeph pic.twitter.com/oPNDZ3Koxs

The Philippines is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire, where around 90 percent of all earthquakes occur worldwide. The last major earthquake with a magnitude of 7.1 had cost more than 220 lives in October 2013. In July 1990, more than 2,400 people died in a quake of magnitude 7.8 on the northern island of Luzon.