After a 6.7-magnitude earthquake struck central Philippines, ASEAN Secretary-General Dr Surin Pitsuwan directed the ASEAN Secretariat and the newly-established ASEAN Humanitarian Assistance (AHA) Centre to monitor developments and be ready to provide assistance if required.

"I am sorry to learn of the casualties, but I am relieved that the tsunami alert has now been cancelled," Dr Surin said, according to a statement released by the ASEAN Secretariat on Monday.

Expressing concern for the residents living around the affected areas, Dr Surin noted that Manila is still busy with the ongoing recovery efforts in light of last December's devastating typhoon in Mindanao.

"ASEAN stands ready to rush assistance to the Philippines. We are closely monitoring the situation, and I'm sure all our fellow ASEAN member states, as well as our dialogue partners, are ready to assist if necessary," said Dr Surin, who is also the ASEAN Humanitarian Assistance Coordinator.

The earthquake jolted Negros-Cebu region, Philippines at 11:49: 16 a.m. local time (03:49:16 GMT) with a depth of 20 km on Monday, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

The quake has centered off the heavily populated central island province of Negros Oriental, and affected other areas nearby such as Negros Occidental, Panay Island, Central Visayas Region, Bicol Region and Pagadian City in Mindanao.

Local sources said that there have been over 40 aftershocks following the first quake this morning. 11 people have been unconfirmed dead so far, according to local officials.

There have been some preventive evacuation efforts in view of the earlier tsunami alert. Since there were no further reports of unusual sea level changes after the two-hour extended observation period, the tsunami alert has now been cancelled.

The AHA Center is closely monitoring the situation in the Philippines, including the extent of damage and assistance required.