GENERAL SANTOS, Philippines (Reuters) - Eleven people died and more than 100 were injured on Wednesday when an earthquake struck at dawn in the southern Philippines, wrecking houses and forcing thousands to flee for fear of tidal waves.
The strongest tremor to hit the quake-prone country in more than a decade knocked out power, plunging cities and towns in Mindanao island into darkness, officials said. Two old churches toppled over.
In General Santos city, thousands of residents and hotel guests, including American and Japanese tourists, streamed out into the streets in panic as the quake, measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale, struck at around 5:15 a.m. (2115 GMT, Tuesday).
"I thought maybe it was the end of the world," said businessman Roger Bihag.
The Hong Kong Observatory said the quake measured 7.6 on the Richter scale. Measurements taken further away from the epicentre often yield more accurate estimates of magnitude.
"The whole of Mindanao was shaken," chief government vulcanologist Raymundo Punongbayan said, referring to the Philippines' biggest island, which is home 18 million people.
More than 5,000 villagers on Sarangani island fled to high ground minutes after the quake struck, fearing tidal waves as the sea swelled by three metres (nine feet), the military said.
The quake originated from the sea 92 km (57.5 miles) southwest of Isulan, the provincial capital of Sultan Kudarat province on Mindanao island, 800 km (500 miles) south of Manila.
CHILDREN CRUSHED TO DEATH
Regional police chief Colonel Bartolome Baluyot told Reuters five people, including three children, were crushed when around 30 wooden houses collapsed during the earthquake.
Four people died from heart attacks at the height of the quake, while one man was electrocuted by a snapped power line, police said.
A boy was killed by a stray bullet as Muslim residents in Cotabato city fired guns in the air, believing the noise would drive away evil spirits.
"Apparently, it is a superstition among Muslims to fire guns during earthquakes and there was a lot of firing," Baluyot said. A resident was injured by the gunfire.
Most of the minority Muslim population in the mainly Roman Catholic country reside on Mindanao island.
About 100 people were injured in General Santos when 1,000 workers stampeded for the exits at a cannery processing tunas, a major export sold to Japan and the United States.
Some workers were trampled and others were accidentally slashed by fellow workers who rushed out still carrying knives used to gut the tuna.
"We were all scared. The lights went out and we all ran to the door. People were crying, 'Oh, God, Oh, God'," said worker Alona Dagupan, her clothes covered in blood.
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said in a radio interview she has been in constant contact with local leaders in Mindanao and urged the local government to speed up the delivery of necessary assistance to the victims.
"The National Disaster Coordinating Council will help out if the calamity funds are not enough," Arroyo said.
POLICEMEN FLEE
A police station in General Santos, a city of more than 600,000 people, collapsed in the quake. Two police cars were crushed.
"Our policemen were able to run," Baluyot said.
The quake knocked out electric power in General Santos, Davao and Cotabato cities and outlying towns, the civil defence office said. Electricity was restored in most areas 12 hours later.
Wednesday's tremor was the strongest to hit the Philippines since a quake of 7.7 magnitude killed more than 1,600 people on the main island of Luzon in 1990.
The Philippines registers around 1,700 earthquakes a year, but only around 16 are strong enough to be felt. (Manila Newsroom +632 841-8936, Fax +632 817-6267, manila.newsroom@reuters.com)