76 powerful replicas in just a few hours. Specialists warn that new major earthquakes are coming in the area

The Taiwan earthquake was followed by at least 76 aftershocks PHOTO Reuters video capture

At least 76 aftershocks were recorded in less than five hours after the earthquake in Hualien, Taiwan, according to the Central Meteorological Administration.

The major earthquake occurred at 07:58 am local time (2:58 am Romanian time), at a depth of 15.5 km, just off the east coast, and was registered with an intensity of 7.5.

A tsunami alert was issued in Okinawa, in the southwest of the Japanese archipelago, but also in the Philippines.

Wu Chien-fu, deputy director of the local government’s Seismology Center, said aftershocks of magnitude 6.5 to 7.0 were possible in the next three to four days.

A mountain off the east coast of Taiwan partially collapsed and slid into the sea after the earthquake that struck on Wednesday morning. Local officials said “a small part” of Guishan Island, or Turtle Mountain Island, a popular tourist site, broke away. Officials posted a before-and-after picture of the damage and urged people “not to worry,” washingtonpost.com said.

The series of earthquakes destroyed much of Taiwan’s internet network, according to NetBlocks, a global internet and cyber security monitoring group. Service was also largely down due to power outages that left up to 310,000 people without power throughout the morning.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida urged residents to continue evacuating as tsunami warnings were in effect for the islands of Okinawa and Miyako and the Yaejima region. He offered Japan’s support and assistance to Taiwan. “We are also aware that Taiwan has serious damage,” Kishida said during a press briefing. “We stand with the people of Taiwan and will provide immediate assistance to Taiwan upon request,” the Japanese prime minister also said.

At least four people died in the 7.4-magnitude earthquake in Taiwan, the most violent in the last 25 years, and at least two buildings were damaged, AP and AFP report.

According to a local newspaper, the United Daily News, three hikers died in Taroko National Park in a landslide near the epicenter, located offshore.

The fourth victim died in a road tunnel.

A building in Hualien was heavily damaged. The ground floor partially collapsed, and the building was inclined at almost 45 degrees.

In Taipei, tiles fell from old buildings and some newer residential complexes, and some construction sites were damaged.

The students of some schools were evacuated to sports fields and equipped with yellow helmets. Some put books on their heads to protect themselves from possible falling objects during some replicas.

Rail service was halted across the island of 23 million people, and subway service was halted in Taipei, where a newly built line was damaged.

Taiwan’s parliament, which operates in a former school built before World War II, suffered damage to walls and ceilings.