At least 47 people were injured and more than 300,000 homes were left without electricity. Authorities say the island’s nuclear facilities were undamaged.
At least four people died this Wednesday and 57 were injured following an earthquake measuring 7.4 on the Richter scale that hit Taiwan. This was the largest earthquake recorded in the region in the last 25 years.
According to the Taiwan National Fire Department, all the deaths occurred in the Hualien region, the closest to the epicenter of the earthquake, in the east. Three of the victims died and more than 40 were injured while hiking on the Taroko Dekaron trail in Xiulin township. Another person died after the vehicle he was driving was hit by falling rocks near a tunnel.
Taiwan’s Nuclear Safety Commission said the island’s nuclear facilities were not damaged. Taiwanese authorities said more than 300,000 homes were left without electricity, although power has already been restored to around 70% of homes.
According to the US Geological Survey, the epicenter of the earthquake was located about 18 km south of the city of Hualien, in Taiwan, at a depth of 34.8 km. The earthquake occurred around 9:00 am (1:00 am in Lisbon) and was also felt in some Japanese and Chinese cities, such as in the province of Fujian, in southeastern China.
Risk warnings were issued tsunami both for Taiwan and neighboring countries, such as Japan, but which have since been removed.
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