The Philippine Ministry of Environment informed that the recent strong earthquake that killed at least 61 people raised the seabed to 2m, causing coral reefs to be exposed and damaging the marine ecosystem.
Updated data from the Philippine disaster management agency says that at least 40 people are still missing after the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that occurred off the coast of Mindanao Island in southern Philippines on June 5.
The Philippine Ministry of Environment said that local people reported for the first time a geological phenomenon called a raised coastline just 2 days after the earthquake. This phenomenon caused the coastline in some areas to expand by up to 200m.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanoeology and Seismology said that the shift of the Cotabato Trench has "pushed up part of the coastline of the Sarangani and Davao Occidental provinces, revealing the seabed that was previously submerged". The agency confirmed that the elevation was recorded at about 2m.
The nearest point of the Cotabato Trench is about 50km from the southern coast of Mindanao Island and is an area where seismic activity occurs frequently. In January this year, this location recorded a series of thousands of minor earthquakes in succession.
The team of experts sent to the scene said they had discovered many long stretches of coastline along with coral reefs and vegetation under the sea completely exposed from the water surface.
An official told AFP on June 14 that it is still impossible to accurately determine the scale of the affected area due to the large area to be surveyed.
According to images released by the regional office of the Philippine Ministry of Environment, large coral reefs were revealed on the surface, with fish and many other marine life dead.
Initially, local people reported this unusual phenomenon due to concerns that gas generated from decomposing sea creature carcasses could affect health.
