MANILA (UPDATE) - A magnitude 5.9 earthquake rocked Batanes Saturday morning, 3 hours after the first temblor jolted the northern islands.

The stronger quake struck 19 kilometers off the town of Itbayat where several houses were destroyed by an earlier 5.4-magnitude temblor. Another 3.2-magnitude quake was recorded at around 5 a.m.

The 7:38 a.m. quake was the "main shock" that followed the first two quakes, said Phivolcs Director Renato Solidum.

"Bawat lindol may series of earthquakes... Ang pinakamalakas sa serye ang classification ay main shock at 'yung mga susunod ay aftershock. Pero 'yung kaninang 4 a.m. ay foreshock," Solidum told DZMM radio.

(For every temblor there's a series of earthquakes. The strongest in the series is classified as the main shock, and the others are aftershocks. But the quake that struck at 4 a.m. was a foreshock.)

Phivolcs said the main shock was felt as an Intensity 7 quake in Itbayat town and Intensity 4 in Basco.

Dan Esdicul, head of the Batanes Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, placed the death toll at 7, with 60 hurt, as of 7 a.m.

• Several dead in Batanes quakes