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MANILA -- A magnitude 6.1 quake struck the waters off the southern province of Surigao Del Sur early Monday, the state seismology institute said.

The tectonic tremor's epicenter was 66 kilometers northeast of Bayabas town. It hit at a depth of 77 kilometers at past 6 a.m., said Phivolcs.

Surigao and Gingoog cities felt the quake at a "scarcely perceptible" Intensity 1, said Phivolcs seismology head Ishmael Narag.

The institute describes this intensity as perceptible to people under favorable circumstances, and can slightly disturb delicately balanced objects and make still water oscillate slowly.

While the quake is expected to spawn aftershocks, it will not cause a tsunami, Narag told TeleRadyo.

Last August, a magnitude 6.6 quake shook the central Philippines, damaged buildings and roads, and left at least one dead.

The Philippines is situated on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", an arc of intense seismic activity that stretches from Japan through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin.

A 6.8-magnitude quake struck the southern island of Mindanao in December, killing at least 3 people, injuring dozens and damaging buildings.

With a report from Agence France-Presse