Rescue teams are working to rescue more than 100 people trapped in mining areas and national parks after Taiwan’s strongest earthquake in decades killed nine people and injured nearly 1,000.
Search efforts around the worst-hit east coast city of Hualien have been hampered by more than 50 aftershocks recorded since Wednesday morning’s quake, Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. . More rain is expected to fall over the next four days, with magnitudes ranging from 6.5 to 7.
About 80 people are believed to be trapped in the mine area, but it was not immediately clear whether they were inside the mine when the quake struck.
Around 50 hotel workers are believed to be stranded in Taroko National Park after a convoy of four minibuses was trapped on a mountain road by a landslide.Cell phone signals suggest they may have taken refuge in the Nine Hills cave system, local reports say. Said, and rescue teams are currently trying to clear a path to reach them. Local media reported that four of the deaths (three hikers and one driver) occurred within the park after falling rocks.
Taiwan is still assessing the impact of earthquakes that struck near Hualien, a popular tourist city on Taiwan’s east coast, with earthquakes measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale according to the monitoring agency, 7.4 on the Richter scale by the United States, and 7.7 on the Richter scale by Japan. Buildings were damaged and people were trapped. amidst dozens of aftershocks. The earthquake was the strongest in Taiwan since 1999, when a magnitude 7.6 quake struck 93 miles (150 kilometers) south of Taipei, killing 2,400 people and injuring 10,000 others.
As darkness fell on Wednesday, hundreds of people spent the night in tents and other shelters. Meanwhile, dozens of emergency workers were working to reinforce damaged buildings and demolish those that appeared beyond salvage.
“I’m scared of the aftershocks, and I don’t know how strong the shaking will be,” said a 52-year-old Hualien resident who gave her last name Yu as she was on her way to the evacuation center.
A woman who runs a guesthouse in Hualien City said she had to scramble to keep her guests calm. “This is the biggest earthquake I’ve ever experienced,” said the woman, who asked to be identified only by her last name, Chan.
President-elect Lai Qingtoku inspected the damage situation in Hualien City, which is close to the epicenter. “The most important thing at the moment, the first priority, is to rescue people,” he said at the scene.
The city’s mayor, Su Cheng Wei, said all residents and businesses in buildings in danger were evacuated and demolition work had begun on four buildings.
As people were heading to work or school, the quake struck at a depth of just 15.5 kilometers (9.6 miles), prompting a tsunami warning for southern Japan and the Philippines, which was later lifted. Chinese state media said the quake was felt in southeastern Fujian province, but a Reuters witness said it was also felt in the commercial capital of Shanghai.
However, no earthquake early warning has been issued for the whole of Taiwan, and authorities are investigating the reason, meteorological authorities said.
Taiwan’s air force said six F-16 jets sustained minor damage at the city’s main base, where jets are frequently scrambled to thwart Chinese air force incursions, but the planes will soon return to duty. He is expected to return to .
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), a major chip supplier to Apple and Nvidia, evacuated some manufacturing plants and said safety systems were working normally. Nvidia said it does not expect any supply disruptions due to the earthquake.
The company later announced that its employees were safe and returned to work immediately after the earthquake. The affected facilities are scheduled to resume production Wednesday night.
The White House said the United States stands ready to provide any necessary assistance. “The United States stands ready to provide any assistance needed. We are praying for all those affected,” National Security Council spokesperson Adrian Watson said in a statement.
via Reuters
