Image taken from a video footage of a woman standing near a partially collapsed building in Hualien, eastern Taiwan on April 3, 2024
| Photo Credit: AP

A powerful earthquake rocked the entire island of Taiwan early Wednesday, collapsing buildings in a southern city and creating a tsunami that washed ashore on southern Japanese islands.

A five-story building in lightly populated Hualien appeared heavily damaged, collapsing its first floor and leaving the rest leaning at a 45-degree angle. In the capital, Taipei, tiles fell from older buildings and within some newer office complexes.

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Train service was suspended across the island of 23 million people, as was subway service in Taipei. But things quickly returned to normal in the capital, with children going to school and the morning commute appearing to be normal.

The Japan Meteorological Agency said a tsunami wave of 30 cm (about 1 feet) was detected on the coast of Yonaguni island about 15 minutes after the quake struck. JAMA said waves likely also hit the coasts of Miyako and Yaeyama islands. Japan’s Self Defence Force sent aircraft to gather information about the tsunami impact around the Okinawa region and were preparing shelters for evacuees if necessary.

Taiwan’s earthquake monitoring agency gave the magnitude as 7.2 while the US Geological Survey put it at 7.4. It struck at 7:58 am about 18 km south-southwest of Hualien and was about 35 km (21 miles) deep.

The head of Taiwan’s earthquake monitoring bureau, Wu Chien-fu, said effects were detected as far away as Kinmen, a Taiwanese-controlled island off the coast of China. Multiple aftershocks were felt in Taipei in the hour after the initial quake.

The USGS said one of the subsequent quakes was 6.5 magnitude and 11.8 km deep.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said there was no tsunami threat to Hawaii or the US Pacific territory of Guam.

The quake was believed to be the biggest in Taiwan since a temblor in 1999 caused extensive damage. Taiwan lies along the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, the line of seismic faults encircling the Pacific Ocean where most of the world’s earthquake’s occur.

A tornado in eastern China killed 10 people and seriously injured several others, state media said Wednesday, the latest in a string of extreme weather events to strike the country. The tornado affected more than 5,500 people, with 137 houses collapsing, according to “preliminary statistics” cited in a CCTV report. More than 400 people have been temporarily relocated because of the twister, state media said.

Video footage of the tornado ripping through buildings has gone viral on the internet, showing the sheer power and destructive force of this natural disaster.

Watch the video here:

Large, deadly tornado in Suqian, Jiangsu Province this afternoon. Tornado likely moved directly through downtown, massive injuries and some fatalities reported. pic.twitter.com/vvKmTRlzZx

— Eric Wang (@Ericwang1101) September 19, 2023

The video shows the tornado as it descends from the sky, forming a massive funnel cloud that twists and turns as it approaches the town. The tornado quickly picks up speed and strength, tearing through buildings and sending debris flying into the air. The video ends with the tornado moving away from the town, leaving behind a trail of destruction.

The viral video has served as a stark reminder of the dangers of tornadoes and the importance of heeding warnings from meteorologists. It has also sparked a debate about the need for better tornado preparedness measures in communities that are at risk.

China saw record-breaking downpours and weeks of historic heat this summer, with scientists saying such extreme weather events are being exacerbated by climate change.

Whole villages in Jiangsu were levelled, and at least 98 people were killed in 2016 after the region was hit by a storm with hurricane-force winds and the worst tornado in half a century.

(With inputs from AFP)