At least eight people were killed, while 12 others wereinjured after two earthquakes jolted the archipelago of Batanes north ofPhilippines' main Luzon island Saturday, a local official said. According tothe local authorities, earthquake measuring 5.4 on the Richter Scale struckbefore dawn.  A historic church and otherhouses were also damaged due to the tremors.

The first quake, which struck at 4:16 a.m. local time, hitat a depth of 12 km, about 12 km northeast of Itbayat town.

The second quake of 6.4 magnitude struck at 7:38 a.m. localtime.The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said thesecond quake hit at a depth of 43 km about 19 km northwest of Itbayat. Bothquakes were tectonic in origin.

Phivolcs director Renato Solidum told a local radio stationthat a quake of such intensity could cause slight damage to houses andinfrastructure.

According to the institute, the tremors were also felt inthe towns of Basco and Sabtang.Aftershocks are expected, the institute said.