Earthquake in Taiwan. Images of water from a swimming pool, flowing down the facade of a skyscraper. The army intervenes in the affected areas

A strong earthquake with a magnitude of 7.4 shook Taiwan. The earthquake was followed by several aftershocks and led to tsunami warnings in southern Japan, which were later withdrawn. Approximately 100 buildings in the east of the country have collapsed and there are reports that dozens of people are under the rubble. For now, official data shows that at least nine people lost their lives, but the number of injured exceeds 700.

By the Observator editorial team on 04/03/2024, 13:46

Taiwan was hit by the strongest earthquake in the last 25 years on Wednesday. Although the official data shows that the magnitude of the earthquake was 7.4, some specialists claim that the earth shook more strongly in some areas. “The earthquake occurred around 8:58 on April 3. The magnitude was 7.7. The earthquake was centered at a depth of 23 kilometers near Taiwan,” reported the coordinator of the Japan Meteorological Agency, Shigeki Aoki.

More than 100 buildings in the capital of Taipei, but also in the neighboring areas, collapsed, and the authorities fear that the number of victims trapped under the rubble would be in the tens. Authorities have now confirmed that 127 people are stranded as a result of the earthquake. Of these, 77 are stuck in the Jinwen and Daqinqshui tunnels in Hualien region. Two other German citizens are trapped in the Chongde Tunnel in Taroko National Park. And the other 50 people are stuck in four minibuses traveling from downtown Hualien to nearby Taroko National Park.

A surveillance camera captured the moment when the earthquake shook the financial district of the capital Taipei. Other cameras filmed a landslide in the mountainous region of Hualien and customers fleeing a restaurant in terror. Footage also emerged of the moment the earthquake shook a pet store in New Taipei City. A five-story building in Hualien was heavily damaged, with the first floor collapsing and the rest leaning at a 45-degree angle, according to the AP. At the same time, on the X platform (formerly Twitter) there are images of the moment when the water from a swimming pool spills over the facade of a skyscraper.

Some of the factories owned by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world’s largest chipmaker, were briefly interrupted, a company representative said.

Following the earthquake, tsunami alerts were also issued, and more than 91,000 houses were left without electricity. Flights were also suspended at Okinawa’s main airport – in the city of Naha. No less than 101 aftershocks occurred in the first hours after the earthquake, and specialists warned the population that new strong earthquakes are possible in the area. “The chances of new earthquakes are somewhere between 10 and 20%, so please take preventive measures this week. Especially in the next few days, it is very likely that a large earthquake will occur,” warns the coordinator of the Japan Earthquake Agency Meteorology, Shigeki Aoki.

Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen said the military would intervene in the affected areas. In a post on social media, the official urged residents to pay attention to updates from the authorities and avoid high-rise buildings with elevators as much as possible.

Strict construction rules and good preparation of the population in case of natural disasters seem to have allowed avoiding a major catastrophe in Taiwan, an island regularly hit by earthquakes.

Earthquake felt in China

Located on the border between several tectonic plates, the island of Taiwan is frequently affected by earthquakes. In September 1999, a 7.6-magnitude earthquake killed 2,400, making it the worst disaster in Taiwan’s modern history.

On the other side of the Formosa Strait, residents of the eastern Chinese province of Fujian and other regions revealed on social media that they also felt a series of strong tremors.

The Chinese authorities, which consider Taiwan to be part of Chinese territory, announced that they are monitoring the effects of the earthquake “very carefully” and declared themselves “ready to provide assistance to the victims”, according to the New China news agency.

Devastating earthquake in Japan

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.

On March 11, 2011, the northeast coast of Japan was hit by a magnitude 9 earthquake, the strongest earthquake ever recorded in Japan, and a massive tsunami. These events triggered the world’s worst civilian nuclear crisis since the Chernobyl disaster a quarter of a century earlier.