LIVETEXT. Earthquake Over 7 Degrees in Taiwan. Collapsed Buildings, People Trapped Under Debris. Ball

Japan is ready to offer support to its “important friend” Taiwan, following Wednesday’s strong earthquake, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said, reports CNN.

In a post on X Network, formerly Twitter, the Japanese official stated that “the memory of Taiwan’s warm helping hand when the Great East Japan Earthquake occurred in 2011 is still fresh. I also felt the warmth of Taiwan again when the Noto earthquake happened earlier this year.”

“Taiwan, our important friend, we sincerely appreciate your help every time. Now our island neighbor faces a difficult situation; Japan is willing to help Taiwan with whatever is needed,” said Fumio Kishida.

And Beijing, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, said through Chinese Taiwan Affairs Office spokeswoman Zhu Fenglian that it was offering aid to the island.

“Relevant parties in mainland China have been very concerned and express their sincere condolences to Taiwanese compatriots affected by the disaster,” Zhu said.

Beijing will “pay special attention to the disaster and its aftermath and is willing to provide disaster relief assistance,” the spokeswoman added.

Taiwan’s National Fire Agency said 26 buildings were reported to have “leaned or collapsed” in the quake, without giving details of where those structures were located, The Guardian reported.

Taiwan, Japan and the Philippines all canceled their tsunami warnings, and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the threat to the United States had “largely passed,” CNN reports.

Tsunami waves were seen off the coasts of Taiwan and islands in Japan’s far southwest after the 7-magnitude earthquake struck Taiwan early Wednesday.

There were no immediate reports of major damage from these waves.

In Taiwan, the height of the tsunami reached almost half a meter in Chenggong, about 100 km south of the epicenter of the earthquake.

Observed tsunami heights are measured over open water and can reach much further up the shore.

In Japan, a wave of 0.3 meters hit the island of Okinawa, Naha airport spokesman Hideaki Tsurodo told CNN, adding that no waves touched the airport, which has since reopened.

For its part, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said that “no significant sea level disturbances were recorded” due to the earthquake.

In the US, the threat of a tsunami has “largely passed”, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said, adding that minor “fluctuations” in sea level, up to 30 centimeters above and below normal tide levels, could continue “in the next few hours”.

Four people have been killed in Taiwan after a magnitude-7 earthquake struck the island, according to Taiwan’s National Fire Agency (NFA), CNN reports.

All the deaths occurred in Hualien County, near the epicenter of the quake, the NFA said. One of those who died was an excursionist.

At the same time, at least 57 people were injured, most of them reported in Hualien, the agency added.

Meanwhile, search and rescue operations are continuing to reach people stranded in Hualien as well as other areas in Taiwan, the BBC reports.

According to the National Fire Agency, many people are stuck in the tunnels.

At least 12 people were rescued from the Uranus building in Hualien. In Taipei, two people were rescued from a stuck elevator in Zhongshan District and seven people were rescued from the scene of a building collapse in New Taipei City’s Xindian District.

According to The Guardian, images shown on television show buildings that have collapsed in the city of Hualien, on the east coast of Taiwan. There would also be people trapped in the rubble.

Footage broadcast by CNN affiliate TVBS showed large boulders falling on the Suhua highway and several tunnels were breached – including one that was torn in two. At least nine rockfalls and landslides were reported on the Suhua Expressway, and the entire line was closed, Taiwan’s Central News Agency said, citing authorities.

Another highway connecting Taiwan’s west and east coasts was also hit by falling rocks, with at least 12 cars hit and nine people injured, according to TVBS.

Winding along the sheer cliffs above the Pacific Ocean, the Suhua Highway is known as one of the most dangerous, but also the most scenic, roads in Taiwan. It connects northeastern Taiwan with the eastern city of Hualien, which is near the epicenter of the earthquake.

The earthquake was also felt in Shanghai, in China. Chinese state media said it was also felt in Fuzhou, Xiamen, Quanzhou and Ningde in China’s Fujian province.

And the Philippine Seismological Agency issued a tsunami alert for coastal areas in the Pacific Ocean on Wednesday, saying they expected to face strong tsunami waves. The population in coastal areas in several provinces were advised to evacuate immediately to higher ground or move further inland, reports The Guardian.

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Japan has issued an evacuation advisory for coastal areas near the southern prefecture of Okinawa. Public broadcaster NHK urged people to stay away from the coast and head for higher ground, while warnings in English and Japanese appeared on the screen.

It’s been just four months since a 7.6-magnitude earthquake followed by a tsunami killed 244 people and caused extensive damage in the Noto Peninsula of Ishikawa Prefecture on the coast of the Sea of ​​Japan.

All flights to Japan’s Naha airport on the island of Okinawa have been diverted following a tsunami warning, an airport spokesman told CNN on Wednesday. All employees and staff were evacuated to the third floor to await the impact of the tsunami, Hideaki Tsurudo said, adding that no waves had reached the airport during the time the alert was issued.

The Japan Meteorological Agency warns the population to be alert for aftershocks of high intensity for about a week.

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Initial news: It was the strongest earthquake to hit the island in the last 25 years. Several people are trapped under the rubble and nine people were injured on a highway.

According to the Japanese Meteorological Agency, the magnitude of the earthquake was 7.7, the initial announcement that said the magnitude was 7.5 was revised. The Japan Meteorological Agency described the earthquake as shallow, which could cause more damage.

The American Geological Institute USGS estimated the current magnitude at 7.4, and the depth of the earthquake at 34.8 km. The epicenter is located 18 km south of the city of Hualien in Taiwan, according to the US Geological Survey.

According to Reuters, the Central Meteorological Administration of Taiwan announced that the magnitude of the earthquake was 7.2 and was felt on Wednesday morning in Taipei, the capital of Taiwan. The strong earthquake left several parts of the city without electricity, according to a Reuters witness.

Television images showed buildings in the city of Hualien, located in eastern Taiwan, shaken from their foundations. The initial earthquake was followed 13 minutes later by another, with a magnitude of 6.5, produced at a depth of only 11.8 kilometers, according to the USGS.

Taiwan’s electricity operator – Taipower – said that more than 87,000 people across the country were left without electricity, according to the Reuters news agency.

A magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck Taiwan in September 1999, killing an estimated 2,400 people in the worst natural disaster in the island’s history.

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