Devastating earthquake hits Taiwan, authorities report four dead, dozens injured

A strong earthquake struck off the east coast of Taiwan today, affecting the entire island and destroying a number of buildings. Press agencies inform about it. Taiwanese authorities are talking about the strongest earthquake in 25 years, which has killed at least four people and injured more than 50. After a few hours, the Japanese authorities canceled the tsunami warning for the arrival of the coast of the small islands in the south of the country. The Philippines also issued a warning against a destructive wave.

According to the US Geological Survey, the quake had a magnitude of 7.4, while Japanese seismologists put it at 7.7 and Taiwan’s at 7.2. The epicenter was located eighteen kilometers southeast of the port of Hualien in eastern Taiwan. The epicenter of the earthquake, which struck shortly before eight in the morning (before 02:00 CEST), was located at a depth of 35 kilometers, the AP agency reported.

Televisions showed images of some buildings in the city of Chua-lien, which were partially disintegrated or collapsed. According to local media, people remained trapped in them. In the metropolis of the island of Taipei, parts of some older houses and newer office buildings were falling away, AP writes. People in the capital also felt weaker aftershocks.

According to Reuters, authorities are talking about at least four victims of the tremors in Chualien County, which also injured at least 57 people.

Train services were disrupted across the island of 23 million people, and some regions lost power. According to the authorities, the local nuclear power plants are out of danger.

The nearest Japanese islands in the southern prefecture of Okinawa already reported the arrival of a tsunami wave approximately 30 centimeters high 15 minutes after the tremors. The authorities initially issued a warning of waves up to three meters high, but later canceled the warning. Operations at the airport in the Okinawan administrative center of Naha have been suspended until further notice. Japan reports no casualties or significant damage. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida expressed his participation on X Taiwan’s social network, saying his country is ready to provide all assistance to the island.

Small earthquakes are common in Taiwan. Earthquakes with a magnitude of 7.6 claimed more than 2,400 lives in 1999. In February 2018, an earthquake on the east coast of Taiwan killed 15 people and injured at least 280 people, including two citizens of the Czech Republic.

Japan was hit by its last major earthquake earlier this year. The 7.6-magnitude event killed over 200 people and caused a meter-long tsunami and landslides.