Taiwan Hit by Most Powerful Earthquake in a Quarter Century

Several individuals were thought to be secure yet inaccessible in regions isolated by extensive landslides caused by the earthquake—numerous within tunnels traversing the mountains dividing the island from north to south.

A powerful earthquake in Taiwan on Wednesday resulted in at least nine fatalities and over 1,000 injuries. The quake caused extensive damage to numerous buildings and led to tsunami warnings reaching Japan and the Philippines though they were later lifted. In areas affected by massive landslides caused by the earthquake, many individuals were believed to be safe but unreachable, particularly within tunnels that traverse the island’s north-south mountain range.

Many individuals were thought to be safe but inaccessible in areas isolated by massive landslides triggered by the earthquake, with a significant number trapped within tunnels that traverse the island’s north-south mountain range.

Authorities stated that this quake was the strongest to hit the island in decades and cautioned about the possibility of more tremors in the coming days. Stringent building regulations and widespread public awareness about disasters seem to have prevented a major catastrophe for the earthquake-prone island, situated near the convergence of two tectonic plates.

“We were incredibly fortunate,” remarked a woman named Chang, who resided next to a printing press warehouse near the capital that collapsed during the quake. However, all 50 people inside at the time were successfully rescued.

Taiwan

Wu Chien-fu, director of Taipei’s Central Weather Administration’s Seismology Center, stated that the earthquake was the most powerful since a 7.6-magnitude quake hit in September 1999, claiming approximately 2,400 lives in the deadliest natural disaster in the island’s history.

Social media was awash with shared video and images from around the island of buildings swaying as the quake struck.

“It was shaking violently, the paintings on the wall, my TV and liquor cabinet fell,” one man in Hualien told broadcaster SET TV.

Dramatic images were shown on local TV of multi-storey structures in Hualien and elsewhere tilting after the quake ended, while a printing warehouse in New Taipei City crumbled.

The mayor there said more than 50 survivors had been successfully plucked from the ruins of the structure.

Local TV channels showed bulldozers clearing rocks along the main route to Hualien, a mountain-ringed coastal county of around 300,000 people that has been cut off by landslides.

The major roads leading to Hualien’s main city pass through an extensive series of strongly built tunnels — some of them kilometres long — and officials said dozens of people could be trapped in vehicles inside.

Dozens of miners were also out of reach at a quarry in Hualien.

“We must carefully check how many people are trapped and we must rescue them quickly,” president-elect and current Vice-President Lai Ching-te told reporters in Hualien.

By nightfall, the county was still experiencing rolling aftershocks as rescuers continued combing through debris.

In Taiwan’s capital, the famed Taipei 101 commercial building lit up to memorialise the victims of the quake.

“Do not go to the mountains unless necessary,” warned President Tsai Ing-wen in a late-night post.

“Aftershocks may occur in the next few days and everyone, please be vigilant and watch out for your own safety.”

Regional impact other than Taiwan

In Taiwan, Japan and the Philippines, authorities initially issued tsunami warnings but by around 10;00 am (0200 GMT), the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the threat had “largely passed”.

In the Taiwanese capital, the metro briefly stopped running but resumed within an hour, while residents received warnings from their local borough chiefs to check for any gas leaks.

Across the Taiwan Strait, social media users in China’s eastern Fujian province and elsewhere said they also felt strong tremors.

Residents of Hong Kong also reported feeling the earthquake.

China, which claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory, was “paying close attention” to the quake and “willing to provide disaster relief assistance”, state news agency Xinhua said.

Fabrication at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company — the world’s biggest chip maker — was briefly interrupted at some plants, a company official told AFP, while work at construction sites for new plants was halted for the day.

The company later said in a statement that a “small number of tools were damaged at certain facilities, partially impacting their operations” but that no “critical tools” had been damaged.

It said it was deploying “all available resources for full recovery, and impacted facilities are expected to resume production throughout the night”.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by RNN staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

For more updates click on https://readnownews.in/

For trending news click on https://readnownews.in/category/trending/