The earthquake rocks Taiwan, causing buildings to collapse and triggering warnings of a storm
The 1999 Sept. 21, 1999, “Jiji” earthquake on Taiwan: tsunamis on Okinawa and the Yaeyama and Miyako islands
According to Taiwan media, the last earthquake of a magnitude 7 or greater to hit the island was the Sept. 21, 1999, “Jiji” earthquake that measured 7.3, which destroyed thousands of buildings and killed more than 2,400 people.
Some 100 miles from the capital, Taipei, strong shaking was felt with aftershocks lasting more than two hours. And there were reports in China that people as far away as Shanghai, about 500 miles to the north, could feel the earthquake.
BuildingsListing to the side after having been shaken off their foundations was a picture on TV. The authorities suspended work and school in Hualien, an area with about 300,000 residents. Authorities also closed down eight power plants for safety, and 87,000 residents in Hualien, the epicenter, were without power, though electricity remains on for the rest of the island.
Train service was suspended island-wide, as well as subway service in Taipei, the transportation authorities said. There are many videos of rockslides covering roads and houses.
Soon after, Japan’s Meteorological Agency forecast a tsunami of up to 3 meters (9.8 feet) for the southern Japanese island group of Okinawa. The wave of 30 centimeters was detected by the AP on the coast of Yonaguni island about 15 minutes after the earthquake. Waves likely hit the coasts of both Yaeyama islands and Miyako islands.
The fall and destruction of three hikers trapped on a trail in the Taroko Gorge in Hualien County, Taiwan, on Wednesday
Hualien County is home to Taroko National Park, one of Taiwan’s most popular scenic areas. Visitors come to explore the Taroko Gorge, a striated marble canyon carved by the Liwu River, which cuts through mountains that rise steeply from the coast. Hualien is a popular location as a gateway to the national park.
Three hikers were trapped on a trail near the entrance to the gorge after a rock fall on Wednesday, according to the state-owned Central News Agency. Two of them were found dead, the news agency said. According to the report, many roads within the park had been cut off because of the earthquake.
According to news reports, the first four floors of a 12-story tilted building were mostly destroyed in the earthquake. The next year, the area was shaken by a 6.1-magnitude earthquake that injured 17 people.
The area has a large amount of Taiwan’s aboriginal population and is home to several of the island’s Indigenous tribes.
Taiwan authorities have suspended work and school in Hualien city after a 6.4-magnitude earthquake hit the island on Wednesday morning. Trains and subway services have also been suspended island-wide. A tsunami warning has been issued for parts of Taiwan’s Yaeyama, Yaeyama and Miyako islands and was later lifted. The US Geological Survey said the earthquake had a magnitude of 6.6.