An earthquake measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale struck Taiwan’s east coast on Wednesday morning, rocking the capital Taipei, causing power outages in many parts of the city and triggering tsunami warnings for Japan’s southern islands and the Philippines.
Taiwanese television showed footage of some buildings collapsing in Hualien, near the epicenter, and media reported people were trapped.
According to Reuters witnesses, the earthquake was felt as far away as Shanghai.
Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau said the epicenter was located on the eastern coast of Hualien County, in the waters near the east coastline of Taiwan Island.
Japan has issued an evacuation warning for the southern coastal areas of Okinawa Prefecture. The Japan Meteorological Agency said a tsunami with a height of 3 meters is expected to hit a large area of Japan’s southwestern coast, with an earthquake magnitude of 7.5.
The Philippine Earthquake Administration also issued warnings to residents in coastal areas of several provinces, urging them to evacuate to higher ground.
The earthquake was felt in Fuzhou, Xiamen, Quanzhou and Ningde in Fujian Province, China, according to Chinese state media.
The Taipei City Government has not received any reports of damage, and the city’s mass rapid transit was put into service soon.
Semiconductor giant TSMC, which has factories in Taiwan’s southern science park, said companies’ operations were not affected.
Taiwan’s official Central News Agency said it was the worst earthquake to hit the island since 1999, when a 7.6-magnitude earthquake killed about 2,400 people.
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