At least four people were killed and several buildings were damaged in Taiwan’s worst earthquake in 25 years. Tsunami risks in Taiwan and Japan have abated despite reports of damage around the island.
Four individuals died in Hualien County close to the epicenter, according to Taiwanese authorities. The island was jolted Wednesday morning at rush hour by the largest earthquake in 25 years, which destroyed roads and buildings and claimed seven lives.
When the earthquake struck Taipei, the nation’s capital, older buildings’ tiles collapsed, forcing schools to relocate their kids to sports grounds where they were given yellow safety helmets.
As the aftershocks persisted, some kids covered themselves with textbooks to protect themselves from falling debris. Later, a five-story structure with its first level fell was left leaning at a 45-degree angle in Hualien County, close to the offshore epicenter.
The tremor occurred just before eight in the morning, and according to Taiwan’s national fire service, seven people perished.
According to the United Daily News, a van driver passed away in Taroko National Park after rocks struck the car, while three hikers perished in rockslides.
736 individuals were hurt and 77 were stranded, according to government records.
In addition to 35 roads, bridges, and tunnels being damaged, the earthquake and its aftershocks also resulted in 24 landslides.
The U.S. Geological Survey reported a magnitude of 7.4, whereas Taiwan’s earthquake monitoring agency reported a 7.2 magnitude.
It struck at a depth of around 35 kilometers (21 miles) and approximately 18 kilometers (11.1 miles) south-southwest of Hualien.
There were several aftershocks that were reported by the USGS to be 11.8 kilometers (7 miles) deep and of magnitude 6.5. More surface damage is often caused by shallower earthquakes. After the earthquake, the tsunami warning was withdrawn.
According to officials, they did not issue any alerts because they had anticipated a relatively small magnitude 4-quake. Even still, those accustomed to this level of shaking were sufficiently alarmed by the earthquake. “I’ve been used to earthquakes because they happen frequently. However, Hsien-hsuen Keng, a Taipei resident who lives in a fifth-floor flat, stated, “Today was the first time I was scared to tears by an earthquake.” “The earthquake woke me up.” I’d never experienced trembling this severe before.
Viewers watched as neighbors and emergency personnel lifted residents—among them a toddler—through windows and out into the street. Everyone seemed to be conscious, shook but not broken. The pressure of the tilt had welded shut several doors.
With landslides and falling debris hitting tunnels and highways in the mountainous area, traffic along the east coast came to a virtual halt following the earthquake. The 23 million-person island saw a suspension of train and metro services, with the newly built above-ground line in Taipei’s capital city partially segregated.
About fifteen minutes after the earthquake, the Japan Meteorological Agency reported that a tsunami wave of thirty centimeters, or roughly one foot, was seen off the coast of Yonaguni Island.
Chinese media said that Shanghai and a number of other regions along China’s southeast coast felt the earthquake. About 160 kilometers (100 miles) separate China from Taiwan.
All tsunami alerts in the area were canceled by Wednesday afternoon, and China did not issue any warnings for the Chinese mainland.
The island, which is frequently shook by earthquakes and braces for them with drills at schools and notifications sent via public media and cell phones, soon overcame the first shock following the quake.
By midday, the bustling metro station of Beitou, a popular suburb of Taipei in the north, was once more alive with people heading to work and seniors coming to enjoy the hot springs or stroll along the mountain trails beneath a dormant volcano.
Seismologist Stephen Gao, a professor at Missouri University of Science and Technology, claims that Taiwan has some of the most sophisticated earthquake preparedness systems in the world, thanks to stringent building regulations, an excellent seismological network, and extensive public awareness campaigns.
The last fatal earthquake to hit Hualien occurred in 2018, bringing down a historic hotel along with other structures. On September 21, 1999, a 7.7-magnitude earthquake that devastated hundreds of buildings and claimed 2,400 lives was Taiwan’s worst earthquake in recent memory.
Taiwan is located along the “Ring of Fire” in the Pacific, a region of seismic faults that surrounds the Pacific Ocean and is the epicenter of most earthquakes worldwide.
Although the exact economic impact of the earthquake is unknown, Taiwan is the world’s top producer of highly technological products that are extremely susceptible to seismic activity, including the most advanced computer chips. A portion of the power grid was also shut down, which might have caused supply chain interruptions and monetary losses.
Employees at several of TSMC’s factories in Hsinchu, southwest of Taipei, have been evacuated, according to the Taiwanese chipmaker, which provides semiconductors to businesses like Apple.
Water and energy supplies for every factory in the city’s technology park were operating normally, according to Hsinchu authorities.
Wednesday saw the regular opening of the Taiwan stock exchange, with the index fluctuating between gains and losses.
