MANILA - Some parts of Chocolate Hills, a top tourist destination in the province of Bohol, were damaged after the province was hit by a strong earthquake Tuesday morning.
A photo taken by Robert Michael Poole, Japan bureau chief of Blouin Artinfo, showed a portion of one of the hills which gave way as a result of the tremors.
A viewing deck was also destroyed, another photo taken by Poole showed.
The Chocolate Hills, dome-shaped hills made of limestone which turn brown during the dry season, is situated in Carmen town where the epicenter of the magnitude 7.2 was located.
Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) executive director Renato Solidum said Carmen is vulnerable to earthquakes as it lies on the path of the East Bohol Fault, which triggered today's earthquake.
Aside from the Chocolate Hills, Bohol's prized centuries-old churches were also destroyed.
ABS-CBN Bayan Patroller photos also showed Bohol's Loboc, Baclayon, Dauis and Loay churches badly damaged, while the one in Loon was completely destroyed.
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
