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A 7.4 magnitude earthquake occurred a few hours ago near Taiwana small island nation 180 km off the coast of China.

The earthquake, which occurred at 7:58 am local time, had its hypocenter at a depth of 15 km, while the epicenter is located off the eastern coast of the country. The very strong earthquake, the strongest in the last 25 years, caused the death of at least nine people and injured hundreds, due to the collapse of buildings.

The number of victims is still provisional, because there are still people under the rubble, trapped in tunnels and collapsed buildings.. The tsunami warning, which was issued shortly after the earthquake and which also placed Japan on alert, has now been lifted.

The strongest earthquake to hit Taiwan to date was recorded on September 21, 1999. With a magnitude of 7.6, it caused 2,400 deaths.

According to international news agencies, the city of Hualien is the most affected. At this time, around 30 buildings have collapsed across the island.

Images of the area show buildings leaning or on the verge of collapse in the mountainous, sparsely populated eastern county of Hualiennear the epicenter of the 7.4 magnitude earthquake.

The discoveries of Mercalli, the volcanologist who gave his name to the intensity scale of earthquakes

“Right now, the most important thing, the top priority, is to save people,” said President-elect Lai Ching-te, according to Reuters, speaking in front of one of the buildings that collapsed in Hualien. The rail link to the area is expected to reopen on Thursday, Lai, who will take office next month, told reporters.

The Taiwanese air force reported that six F-16 fighters suffered minor damage at one of the city’s main bases, from where planes frequently take off to repel attacks by the Chinese air force – Reuters reports – but the planes are expected to return to service very soon.

In the last years, the growing tensions between China and this small Pacific country have been a cause for alarm, with bilateral relations gradually deteriorating.

A highly seismic zone

The earthquake occurred in one of the most seismically active areas on planet Earthalong the western edge of the Philippine tectonic plate, along the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire.

Along this tectonic margin, which appears as a huge ring when viewed from abovepowerful earthquakes have occurred in recent decades, even with magnitudes greater than 8, capable of generating devastating tsunamis, and This is where 90% of Earth’s seismic activity is concentrated. Much of Earth’s volcanic activity is also concentrated along the Ring of Fire.