A 6.9-magnitude quake struck off the coast of the central Philippines late Tuesday, killing at least five people as it wrecked roads and buildings and knocked out power in parts of the region, local authorities said.

All five deaths were recorded in the municipality of San Remigio in the north of the populous major island of Cebu, local police told AFP.

Four bodies were pulled from a sports centre in San Remigio, while a child was crushed by debris in another area of the town, Manila television network ABS-CBN reported from the scene.

The quake struck at sea off the Cebu city of Bogo at 9:59 pm (1359 GMT), damaging buildings and roads and triggering a rescue effort across the north of the island, provincial rescue official Wilson Ramos said.

"There could be people trapped beneath colla

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