A 6.9-magnitude quake struck off the coast of the central Philippines on Tuesday evening, damaging buildings and roads and knocking out power in parts of the region, with no immediate reports of casualties.

The local seismology office warned of a possible "minor sea-level disturbance" and urged residents of the central islands of Leyte, Cebu and Biliran to "stay away from the beach and not to go to the coast".

The epicentre of the quake was at sea off the northern tip of Cebu island and near Bogo, a city of more than 90,000 people, according to a Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, adding it expected both damage and aftershocks.

Cebu firefighter Joey Leeguid told AFP from San Fernando town: "We felt the shake here in our station, it was so strong. We saw our locker movin

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