A 7.2 magnitude earthquake rocked Taiwan on Wednesday, the strongest tremor to hit the island in at least 25 years, shaking buildings from their foundations and sparking a tsunami warning for the islands of southern Japan and the Philippines.
Taiwan television stations showed footage of some collapsed buildings in the eastern county of Hualien, near the quake’s epicentre, and media reported some people were trapped.
The quake hit at 07:58 a.m. (2358 GMT) at a depth of 15.5km (9.6 miles) just off the eastern coast of Taiwan, according to Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration. It was the strongest quake to hit the island in 25 years, state media said.
Japan issued an evacuation advisory for the coastal areas of the southern prefecture of Okinawa. Tsunami waves of up to 3 metres (10 feet) were expected to reach large areas of Japan’s southwestern coast, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency, which put the quake magnitude at 7.5.
The US Geological Survey (UCGS) confirmed on X, “Notable quake, preliminary info: M 6.5 – 11 km NE of Hualien City, Taiwan.” The epicentre of the quake was located 25 km south-southeast of Hualien County Hall at a depth of 15.5 km in the Pacific Ocean, according to Taiwan’s Seismology Centre. The temblor is reportedly the biggest in Taiwan since the massive 1999 quake of 7.6 magnitude that caused extensive damage.
A tsunami wave of 30 cm height was detected on Japan’s Yonaguni, Miyako and Yaeyama islands about 15 minutes after the quake struck, confirmed the Japan Meteorological Agency. Flight services were suspended at a major airport in Okinawa amid tsunami alerts.
The Philippines’s seismology authority issued an advisory for “high tsunami waves”. “The people in the coastal areas of the following provinces are strongly advised to immediately evacuate to higher grounds or move farther inland,” the agency stated.
China Earthquake Networks Center recorded five aftershocks of around 5 magnitude in Taiwan within an hour after the initial quake.Taiwan’s high speed rail operator said no damage or injuries were reported on its trains, but noted trains will be delayed while it carries out inspections.
