55,000 in PH eastern coast go home after tsunami alert lifted

MANILA, Philippines – (UPDATE) More than 55,000 people were returning to their homes all along the eastern coast of the Philippines Saturday as the threat of a tsunami from Japan's devastating quake subsided, officials said.

The government ordered the country's Pacific seaboard cleared of people on Friday as a magnitude 8.9 quake unleashed tsunamis on Japan's east coast and triggered a Pacific-wide alert.

National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council executive director Benito Ramos said residents were allowed to return home after spending the night at temporary shelters inland, but advised them to avoid the water.

"The current trend of observed wave heights suggests that the threat of a hazardous tsunami has passed," he said in a statement.

The council said 55,335 people were moved off the coasts overnight as a precaution.

Small tsunami waves struck the country in early evening, but caused no damage or casualties.

Like Japan, the Philippines lies in the Pacific "Ring of Fire."

Scientists cite studies that show that a large number of buildings in Manila would be damaged or destroyed by a similar 8.9-magnitude that hit Japan.

A 7.9 magnitude quake generated tsunami waves in 1976, killing nearly 5,000 people.

A 7.7 magnitude quake in 1990 killed nearly 2,000 people. (report from Agence France-Presse, Associated Press)