Of magnitude 7.4: there are several dead and fifty injured
On Wednesday morning there was a magnitude 7.4 earthquake off the coast of Taiwan, an island in the Pacific Ocean which is located about 180 kilometers away from the coast of China. Due to the earthquake, some buildings collapsed, at least four people died and more than 50 were injured. It is the strongest earthquake recorded on the island for 25 years.
The epicenter of the earthquake was detected about 18 kilometers south of the city of Hualien, according to the US Geological Survey (the United States Geological Survey), with the hypocenter at a depth of 12 kilometers. The earthquake occurred at 7:58 local time (1:58 in Italy).
Taiwan’s firefighters said one of the dead people was crushed by falling rocks in a mountainous, sparsely populated area of Hualien. In all, according to initial information, at least 26 buildings have collapsed, more than half of them in Hualien, and around 20 people are still trapped under the rubble. After the earthquake, Japan and the Philippines issued a tsunami warning, which however was canceled shortly afterwards.
Hualien is located on the east coast of the island of Taiwan, about 130 kilometers south of Taipei, the island’s capital. It is located in a predominantly mountainous area, which is why the earthquake caused several landslides that blocked roads and railway tracks. Due to the landslides, all trains to Hualien were temporarily suspended.
Taiwan is separated from China by the Taiwan Strait. In addition to the main island, which is called Formosa Island, the Taiwanese government also controls other small nearby archipelagos, such as those of Penghu and Matsu. Taiwan is in fact a state that enjoys full sovereignty, has a parliament and a government, but China claims it as its own territory.
– Read also: What relationship do Taiwan and China have?
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2024-04-03 04:03:22
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