The earthquake also left dozens of buildings damaged and tsunami warnings on the East Asian coast finally discarded.
Taiwanese authorities said that The earthquake and its followingshocks were the most intense on this island in 25 yearsand warned that more tremors may occur in the coming days.
All the deaths occurred in Hualien county, the closest point to the epicenter of the earthquake in the east of the island, the fire department said. In addition, 946 people were injured, this source added, without specifying the severity of the injuries.
Three of the victims were crushed to death by rocks while hiking. And a fourth died in a landslide. The circumstances of the other deaths have not yet been reported.
“Everything was shaking violently. The pictures on the wall, the television and the liquor cabinet fell,” a resident of Hualien city told local television. SET TV.
Reported video of the heavy shaking inside a TV studio in Taiwan during the earthquake. pic.twitter.com/C2UN4igFvB
— Moshe Schwartz (@YWNReporter) April 3, 2024
Local media showed numerous multi-story buildings in Hualien tilted dangerously following the shaking.
In New Taipei City in the north, a warehouse collapsed, but more than 60 people emerged from the rubble alive, the mayor said.
“It was like a mountain collapsed,” said Liu, who lives next to the warehouse, where a printing press operated.
“The strongest in 25 years”
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) indicated that the earthquake had a magnitude of 7.44 and occurred just before 8:00 a.m. local time (00:00 GMT). The Taiwanese meteorological agency estimated the magnitude at 7.2, while the Japanese meteorological agency calibrated it at 7.5.
The epicenter was located 18 kilometers south of Hualien, with a depth of 34.8 km, the USGS indicated.
“The earthquake was close to the ground and is shallow. It was felt throughout Taiwan and the islands (…). It is the strongest in 25 years,” Wu Chien-fu, director of the Taiwanese Seismological Center, told reporters.
Oh it’s massive, horrible earthquake in #Taiwan 😔
7.4 magnitude earthquake in eastern Taiwan, the strongest in 25 years.– Multiple buildings have collapsed in eastern Taiwan, no word yet on casualties.
– Tsunami warnings issued in Taiwan and Okinawa, Japan and the… pic.twitter.com/D8Y3WIuBDN
— Barrister Sidra Qayyum (@Shr_9998) April 3, 2024
The United States offered Taiwan “all necessary assistance” and a spokeswoman for the National Security Council stated that they are monitoring “information on the impact of the earthquake in Taiwan” and “its possible repercussions on Japan.”
In September 1999, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake killed regarding 2,400 people in Taiwan, still the deadliest natural disaster in Taiwan’s history.
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen called for coordination between local and central agencies and announced that the army would provide support in rescue and assistance efforts.
A vehicle camera captures the effect of a 7.5 magnitude earthquake on a highway in eastern Taiwan.
pic.twitter.com/06advR9q0M— GeotechTips (@GeotechTips) April 3, 2024
The authorities deployed excavators to remove the rocks that blocked the roads towards Hualien, according to images from local channels.
The roads leading to this city go through numerous tunnels and authorities fear that vehicles have been trapped inside.
“We must thoroughly check how many people are trapped and quickly rescue them,” Vice President Lai Ching-te, who will take over as president in May, told reporters.
#Earthquake in #Taiwan: The strongest in the last 25 years, what do we know?
The death toll from the earthquake that hit Taiwan on Wednesday rose to nine, while 882 people have been injured
ℹ️ Details in Cubadebate pic.twitter.com/zc1txqC14v
— Cubadebate (@cubadebatecu) April 3, 2024
Strict building regulations and social awareness regarding this type of disaster seem to have prevented a major catastrophe in Taiwan, regularly affected by earthquakes due to its location between two tectonic plates.
Tsunami warnings
The earthquake was felt throughout Taiwan and had several followingshocks, including one of magnitude 6.5 near Hualien, according to the island’s meteorological agency.
In the capital Taipei, subway traffic was suspended for almost an hour, and authorities asked residents to check for gas leaks.
Taiwanese semiconductor maker TSMC, the world’s largest, briefly halted production at some plants, an official told the AFP.
The shock reached the other side of the Taiwan Strait, in the Fujian region of mainland China, or the semi-autonomous city of Hong Kong.
🇹🇼 | This is how a building collapsed in Hualien following the 7.5 magnitude earthquake that hit the coast of Taiwan on Wednesday morning.
pic.twitter.com/X6hEmlF6Jn— Alerta News 24 (@AlertNews24) April 3, 2024
It also triggered tsunami warnings in Taiwan, the southwestern islands of Japan and several provinces in the Philippines, although they were lifted shortly followingwards.
In Japan, authorities temporarily suspended air traffic at Naha airport on the island of Okinawa.
A Japanese government spokesman said no casualties were detected in that region, although Japan’s meteorological agency detected tsunami waves of up to 30 centimeters on some of its islands.
#earthquake #Taiwan #experienced #strongest #years
