At least eight people have died and 60 others are injured after three strong earthquakes hit a group of sparsely populated islands in the Philippines.
The quakes all happened around the province of Batanes, located in the north of the country.
At around 4:15am on Saturday local time, a 5.4 magnitude quake was measured in the area.
Three hours later it was followed by a 5.9 magnitude quake.
According to the Philippine seismology institute (PHIVOLCS), a 5.8 quake then hit at 9:24am.
While there was no tsunami warning issued, the powerful quakes have been followed by a series of aftershocks.
The tremors collapsed houses, which on the islands are typically built from stone and wood.
Mayor Raul de Sagon confirmed dozens of people were hurt, noting that many people were in their homes when the earthquakes struck.
Police Sergeant Uzi Villa told the AFP news agency: "We saw houses shaking. Some of the walls of the houses collapsed and fell on the victims.
"Some people died because they were sleeping soundly since it was still early."
Authorities said medical and rescue teams were being deployed to affected areas.
The Philippines are located in the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, an area of frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
