An earthquake of magnitude 6.5 struck Taiwan’s east coast near Hualien. The quake was so strong that it knocked down a six-story building, leaving a huge hole and forcing a lot of people to leave their homes. It was one of the deadliest quakes to hit Taiwan in decades.
When did the earthquake happen?
According to the Taiwan Earthquake Administration (TEA), the powerful quake struck around 11:50 pm local time Tuesday, at a depth of 23.6km (14.7 miles). Authorities have confirmed that nine people have died and more than 400 injured after several buildings were either damaged or completely destroyed.
Footage posted on social media showed buildings shaking and cars rocking on their wheels. The quake’s epicenter was near the city of Hualien on Taiwan’s east coast, and it was felt as far away as Taipei, the capital, 40 miles (65km) to the southwest.
Its impact on a global scale:
The National Fire Agency said on its website Tuesday that at least 25 people had died, but as many as 44 may have been killed. It issued a tsunami warning for some coastal regions and told people not to return home until further notice. Rescuers were still trying to find more bodies from crushed buildings across town on Wednesday morning.
Vice President Chen Chien-Jen said that the death toll could rise because some people were still trapped under collapsed buildings and in landslides. An official in Hualien County, which encompasses the scene of the quake, said that more than 1,600 people were injured.
What impact has it had on a global scale?
The quake struck during a national holiday that saw people celebrating the Lunar New Year at temples and parks, and many travelers on scheduled flights to Taiwan from other nations were stuck at airports or unable to leave their hotels, including those in Tokyo and Hong Kong. Hundreds of thousands of tourists are expected to visit Taiwan for the holidays this year.
The island has been rocked by frequent earthquakes this year. A 7.6 tremor in February killed six people and injured hundreds. A 7.3 quake struck the west coast on Feb. 6, killing four people and injuring nearly 1,000 others.
Adapted from “History”
The damage from Tuesday’s earthquake isn’t that bad compared to the Haiti earthquake in 2010, which killed more than 200,000 people and caused a lot of damage. Still, the death toll is likely to rise.
Most of Taiwan lies on or near fault lines and has been hit by numerous earthquakes throughout history. The most devastating was a magnitude-8 earthquake that killed Otago. in 1999. At least 2,229 people in Kaohsiung were killed as shipping containers tumbled from a container port during an aftershock.
Earthquake Inside Views
A powerful earthquake of magnitude 6.5 strikes the east coast of Taiwan, killing nine and injuring more than 400. The earthquake’s epicenter was near the city of Hualien on Taiwan’s east coast, and it was felt as far away as Taipei.
The death toll from Tuesday’s earthquake in Taiwan is likely to rise, an official says. The quake struck during a national holiday that saw people celebrating the Lunar New Year. Many people who were supposed to fly to Taiwan on regular flights from other countries were stuck at airports or couldn’t leave their hotels.
