Earthquake in Taiwan leaves at least nine dead

A 7.2 magnitude earthquake that caused a tsunami warning on the eastern coast of Taiwan and the archipelago Japanese de Okinawa, left at least nine dead and more than 800 injuredaccording to local authorities.

The movement was generated early on Wednesday morning, in the strongest phenomenon of this style in the country in the last 25 years.

Two of the deceased were climbers who were at the entrance to the Taroko National Park canyon.in Hualien, and were hit by an avalanche of rocks, according to the official CNA agency.

Photo: EFE

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Photo: EFE

The acting president of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen, has asked the population to remain calm and take extreme precautions against the possibility of aftershocks, of which there have been more than 120 after the first movement. The incident caused structural damage, with at least 27 buildings collapsed so far.

Regarding those trapped in buildings, as well as those missing, the official information is 127 personas.

In Japan, where there was also an evacuation of coastal areas in Okinawa, there was a sigh of relief when observing that The possible tsunami of three meters high was reduced to a wave of 30 centimeters. Both there and in the Philippines, the tsunami warning has been canceled.

Photo: EFE

Local media also reported a strong landslide and rockslide in Xiulin, on the east coast of the island, and the collapse of a warehouse in New Taipei (north), which caused at least three injuries.

People residing in Taipei posted on the red social X what The movement was strongly felt in the Taiwanese capitalwhere the buildings shook continuously for more than a minute and stones fell from numerous buildings.

Nearly a thousand people are trapped in the mountains of Taroko National Park, in Hualien county (southeast of Taiwan), as a result of the 7.2-magnitude earthquake that shook the island’s east coast this Wednesday, the state agency reported. CNA news.

Photo: EFE

According to estimates by park authorities, at least 654 people, including tourists and employees, were in Taroko at the time of the earthquake and several hundred entered the park later, raising the number of stranded people to close to a thousand.

The park will remain closed until April 7 and its officials asked visitors to avoid areas that have been damaged by the earthquake.