A powerful earthquake struck Taiwan, damaging buildings and triggering a tsunami that washed up on Japan’s southern islands.
A five-story building in sparsely populated Hualien City appeared to be severely damaged, with the first floor collapsing and the rest leaning at a 45-degree angle.
Taiwan’s earthquake monitoring agency said Wednesday morning that the quake measured 7.2 on the Richter scale, while the U.S. Geological Survey put the magnitude at 7.4.
Train services were suspended on the island of 23 million people, and in the capital Taipei, tiles fell from old buildings and some newer office towers.
The school evacuated students wearing protective headgear such as motorcycle helmets to the sports field and equipped them with yellow protective hoods.
Wu Jianfu, director of Taiwan’s Earthquake Monitoring Bureau, said the effects of the earthquake were detected as far away as Taiwan-controlled Kinmen Island off the coast of China.
The earthquake, considered Taiwan’s worst since the 1999 earthquake, killed 2,400 people, injured about 100,000 and destroyed thousands of buildings.
The Japan Meteorological Agency predicts a tsunami of up to three meters in size on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa.
About 15 minutes after the earthquake, 30cm high waves were detected off the coast of Yonaguni Island.
The Japan Self-Defense Force has sent aircraft into the area to collect information on the impact of the tsunami in the Okinawa area and prepare shelters for evacuees if necessary.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said there was no tsunami threat to Hawaii and Guam.
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