Image used for representational purposes only.
| Photo Credit:  Getty Images/iStockphoto

Image used for representative purpose only
| Photo Credit: AP

A magnitude 5.6 earthquake shook buildings in Taiwan on Thursday (January 30, 2025), as a series of temblors hit the island, causing little damage but possibly portending more seismic activity in the near future.

The biggest of the quakes hit at 10:11 a.m. (0211 GMT) in Chiayi county’s Dapu township at a depth of 10 kilometers (6 miles), according to the Central Weather Agency and the U.S. Geological Survey. The epicenter was about 250 kilometers (155 miles) south of the capital, Taipei, where buildings swayed slightly.

That was followed shortly afterward by at least a dozen smaller quakes in Dapu. All were aftershocks from a magnitude 6.4 earthquake that struck Dapu on Jan. 21 and sent 15 people to the hospital with minor injuries, as well as damaging buildings and a highway bridge.

No injuries were reported from Thursday’s quake, although crews were dispatched to clear away tiles and signage that had been shaken off buildings. Train service was also suspended for 70 minutes on the island’s north-south high-speed rail while safety checks were conducted, and speeds on slower trains were also reduced.

Thursday was a a major travel during the weeklong Lunar New Year festival.

Last April, a magnitude 7.4 quake hit the island’s mountainous eastern coastal county of Hualien, killing at least 13 people, injuring more than 1,000 others, collapsing a hotel and forcing the closure of Toroko National Park. That was the strongest earthquake in 25 years and was followed by hundreds of aftershocks.

Taiwan is going through a period of increased seismic activity that could lead to further aftershocks or new quakes, although they are unlikely to be majorly destructive, according to the CWA and earthquake experts.

“This was a third wave of quakes, and if there is a fourth wave it will likely be smaller,” said Kuo Kai-wen, former head of the CWA’s Seismological Center.

Taiwan lies along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” the line of seismic faults encircling the Pacific Ocean from Chile to New Zealand where most of the world’s earthquakes occur.

The 1999 magnitude 7.7 quake killed 2,415 people, damaged buildings around the island of 23 million people and led to tightened building codes, better response times and coordination and widespread public education campaigns on earthquake safety.

Schools and workplaces hold earthquake drills, while cellphones buzz whenever a strong earthquake is detected.

Taipei, Taiwan:

A 6.0-magnitude earthquake hit Taiwan on Tuesday, the US Geological Survey said, injuring 27 people and causing ceilings of homes to cave in according to local authorities.

An AFP journalist in the capital Taipei felt tremors for nearly a minute as the shallow quake struck shortly after midnight.

The epicenter was recorded 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) north of Yujing, a mango-growing district in southern Taiwan, the USGS said.

Video posted on Facebook and verified by AFP showed local fire authorities rescuing three people, including a child, who were trapped in a house that collapsed in nearby Nanxi district. The ceilings of several other houses in the district caved in.

Elsewhere, a person was injured by falling debris while two people were rescued from elevators, authorities said.

The health ministry said a total of 27 people were injured, while the Nanxi district fire brigade said “no major damage” had been reported.

Taiwanese chipmaking giant TSMC said it evacuated workers from some of its central and southern factories.

In Chiayi City, north of Yujing, CCTV showed shelves swaying and goods falling to the floor, in footage shared on Threads and verified by AFP.

Taiwan is frequently hit by earthquakes due to its location on the edges of two tectonic plates near the Pacific Ring of Fire, which USGS says is the most seismically active zone in the world.

The last major earthquake occurred in April 2024 when the island was hit by a deadly 7.4-magnitude tremor that officials said was the strongest in 25 years. At least 17 people were killed in that quake, which triggered landslides and severely damaged buildings around Hualien.

April’s earthquake was the most serious in Taiwan since it was struck by a 7.6-magnitude tremor in 1999. Some 2,400 people died in that quake, making it the deadliest natural disaster in the island’s history.

Since then, Taiwan has updated and enhanced its building code to incorporate quake-resistant construction methods, such as steel bars that allow a building to sway more easily when the ground moves.

Famous for its cutting-edge tech firms, Taiwan has built up an advanced early warning system that can alert the public to potentially serious ground shaking within seconds.

The system has been enhanced over the years to incorporate new tools such as smartphones and high-speed data connectivity, even in some of the most remote parts of the island.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Taipei:

 A 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck 34 km (21.13 miles) off Taiwan’s eastern city of Hualien on Friday, the island’s weather administration said, with no immediate reports of damage.

The quake shook buildings in the capital, Taipei. The quake had a depth of 9.7 km, the weather administration said.

Taiwan lies near the junction of two tectonic plates and is prone to earthquakes.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

TAIPEI:

A 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck just off Taiwan’s eastern county of Hualien on Saturday, the island’s weather administration said, with no immediate reports of damage.

The quake shook buildings in the capital, Taipei. The quake had a depth of 24.9 km (15.5 miles), the weather administration said.

Taiwan has been hit by more than 1,000 aftershocks since a 7.2 magnitude quake struck Hualien earlier this month, killing 17 people.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

In this image from a video, roads in Hualien, Taiwan are cordoned off after a cluster of earthquakes struck the island early Tuesday, April 23, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP

A cluster of earthquakes struck the island republic of Taiwan early Tuesday, the strongest having a magnitude of 6.1, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

There were no reports of casualties in the quakes, although there were further damages to two multi-story buildings that had been evacuated following a magnitude 7.4 quake that hit the island earlier this month, killing 13 people and injuring over 1,000. That earthquake was centered along the coast of the rural and mountainous Hualien County.

ALSO READ | A lesson from Taiwan in quake resilience

It was the strongest earthquake in the past 25 years in Taiwan and was followed by hundreds of aftershocks

According to the USGS, Tuesday’s quake of 6.1 magnitude had its epicenter 28 kilometers (17.5 miles) south of the city of Hualien, at a dept of 10.7 kilometers. The half-dozen other quakes ranged from magnitude 4.5 to magnitude 6, all near Hualien. Taiwan’s own earthquake monitoring center put the magnitudes of the initial quake at 6.3. Such small discrepancies are common between monitoring stations.

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Taipei:

-More than 80 earthquakes, the strongest of 6.3 magnitude, struck Taiwan’s east coast starting Monday night and into the early hours of Tuesday and some caused shaking of buildings in the capital Taipei, the island’s weather administration said.

The quakes were centred on the largely rural eastern county of Hualien, where on April 3 at least 14 people died after a 7.2 magnitude temblor. Taiwan has been jolted by hundreds of aftershocks since then.

The fire department in Hualien said early on Tuesday that a hotel which had already been damaged on April 3 and was no longer in operation was now slightly leaning on its side.

However, there were no reports of any casualties.

Taiwan lies near the junction of two tectonic plates and is prone to earthquakes.

More than 100 people were killed in a quake in southern Taiwan in 2016, while a 7.3 magnitude quake killed more than 2,000 people in 1999.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Hualien:

Five earthquakes struck Shoufeng Township, Hualien County, in eastern Taiwan on Monday within just 9 minutes, as reported by Central News Agency Focus Taiwan.

The seismic activity occurred between 5:08 pm and 5:17 pm (local time).

“Five #earthquakes struck Shoufeng Township, Hualien County, eastern Taiwan, in 9 minutes between 5:08 p.m. and 5:17 p.m. (UTC+8),” CNA Focus Taiwan posted on X.

Two weeks ago, a powerful earthquake measuring 7.4 on the Richter Scale rocked Taiwan’s eastern shores, leaving four people dead and over 700 others injured.

“Notable quake, preliminary info: M 6.5 – 11 km NE of Hualien City, Taiwan,” the US Geological Survey (USGS) said in a post on X.

The quake that struck Hualien City on April 3 killed four people and injured more than 700 others, the National Fire Agency said while adding that of those injured, 132 are in Hualien County, near the epicentre of the quake.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Taipei:

Taiwan’s capital was shaken by a “strong” earthquake early Monday evening, AFP staff reported, with the Central Weather Administration saying it was a magnitude-5.5 tremor originating in eastern Hualien.

The region was the epicentre of a magnitude-7.4 quake that hit on April 3, causing landslides around the mountainous region that blocked off roads, while buildings in the main Hualien city were badly damaged.

At least 17 were killed in the quake, with the latest body discovered on April 13 in a quarry.

Monday’s quake hit Taiwan at around 5:08 pm local time (0908 GMT) and could be felt in the capital Taipei.

US Geological Survey put it at 5.3 magnitude, with a depth of 8.9 kilometres.

“It felt like one of the strongest quakes or aftershocks since the big one earlier this month,” an AFP staffer said.

Hualien’s fire department said in a short post on its official social media channel that they had dispatched teams to inspect of any disaster from the quake.

“We will continue to monitor the situation and report in a timely manner.”

Taiwan sees frequent quakes as it is located at the junction of two tectonic plates.

The April 3 quake was followed by hundreds of aftershocks, which caused rockfalls around Hualien.

It was the most serious in Taiwan since 1999 when a magnitude of 7.6 hit the island.

The death count then was far higher — with 2,400 people killed in the deadliest natural disaster in the island’s history.

Stricter building regulations — including enhanced seismic requirements in its building codes — and widespread public disaster awareness appeared to have staved off a more serious catastrophe in April’s major quake.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

HUALIEN, TAIWAN – APRIL 06: A helicopter descends onto a car park carrying people rescued from the Taroko Gorge after they were trapped in the mountainous areas for nearly 3 days on April 06, 2024 in Hualien, Taiwan. There are still hundreds of victims stuck in the mountains after a 7.5 magnitude earthquake hit eastern Taiwan on Wednesday, April 3rd, triggering a tsunami warning for the coastline in Taiwan, The Philippines and Japan. (Photo by Annabelle Chih/Getty Images)
| Photo Credit: Getty Images

Rescuers were planning to bring in heavy equipment on April 6 to try to recover two bodies buried under boulders on a hiking trail, three days after Taiwan’s strongest earthquake in 25 years.

Four more people remain missing on the same Shakadang Trail in Taroko National Park, famed for its rugged mountainous terrain. Search and recovery work was set to resume, after being called off Friday afternoon because of aftershocks.

Also read | Rescuers search for people out of contact in Taiwan after strong earthquake

At least 12 people were killed by the magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck Wednesday morning off Taiwan’s east coast, and 10 others were still missing.

More than 600 people, including about 450 at a hotel in the Taroko park, remained stranded in various locations cut off by rockslides and other damage.

Survivors have told harrowing tales of rocks tumbling onto roadways, trapping them in tunnels until rescuers arrived to free them. In the city of Hualien, a building left tilting over a street at a precarious angle was being carefully torn down.

The relatively low number of deaths from such a powerful quake has been attributed to strict construction standards and widespread public education campaigns on the earthquake-prone island.

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