BUTUAN CITY – Residents of Tandag were rattled early Sunday evening when a 5.0 magnitude earthquake struck early Sunday evening, causing several residents to run away from their respective houses in fear.

However, no damages or injuries were reported as of this posting, the region’s Office of Civil Defense (OCD) said.

The Sunday earthquake occurred at 5:54 p.m. with the epicenter located at 38 kilometers east of Tandag City, in Surigao del Sur, the office of Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said.

The tremor had a depth of 080.0 kilometers and was tectonic in origin, Phivolcs added.

The tremor was also felt in neighboring areas such as Mati and Butuan.

Last Wednesday, a 3.8 magnitude quake was also recorded in Mati City, Davao Oriental.

At least 3 tremors already took place in less than three weeks in southern Mindanao.

Last February 26, a 5.5 magnitude earthquake occured 92 kilometers southeast of Mati City. This was followed by another earthquake on March 1, with a magnitude of 5.0, 16 kilometers the northwest of the same city.

Phivolcs said the area is seismically active because of the network of faults in the area that are connected to the complex fault system in the Molucca Sea.

The OCD said no reported damage or injuries was reported on these series of earthquakes in reported areas.