A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan at 2:44pm yesterday, killing one person — a worker at a cement factory in Hualien County’s Yuli Township (玉里), who was struck by falling equipment, and at least 79 persons injured.
The quake, centered in Taitung County’s Chihshang Township (池上), also caused an apartment building and two bridges in Hualien to collapse. It was the strongest earthquake to hit the nation so far this year and followed a magnitude 6.4 tremor late on Saturday.
Rescuers in Yuli Township yesterday saved all four people trapped under rubble at the apartment building, and others rescued three people, who were crossing the nearby Kaoliao Bridge (高寮大橋) when it collapsed, the Hualien County Government said.
Photo: AP
The Luntien Bridge (崙天大橋) connecting Hualien’s Jhuosi (卓溪) and Fuli (富里) townships also collapsed.
Damage was also reported at the Yuli Bridge (玉里橋), impeding traffic on Highway No. 9.
Six cars of Tzuchiang Express train No. 402 derailed in Hualien’s Dongli Station after being hit by a collapsing concrete canopy.
Photo: AFP / Taiwan Railways Administration
The Taiwan Railways Administration said that 20 passengers had left the train before the derailment.
Train services were suspended between Hualien and Taitung, the agency said.
It also reported damage to railway tracks and cables along railway lines in the two east coast counties.
Photo: CNA
Nearly 400 travelers were trapped on Yuli’s Chikeshan (赤科山), as a road was damaged by a landslide triggered by the earthquake, local residents said.
Cellphone reception was weak, likely due to utility poles being damaged by landslides, they said.
The quake also damaged water pipes in Yuli, where power outages affected more than 7,000 households.
Photo: Huang Ming-tang, Taipei Times
Hualien County Commissioner Hsu Chen-wei (徐榛蔚) announced that schools and offices in Yuli, Fuli and Jhuosi townships would remain closed today, citing damage to homes, roads and other infrastructure.
Taitung County Commissioner Yao Ching-ling (饒慶鈴) announced school and office closures in Chihshang, Guanshan (關山), Luye (鹿野), Yenping (延平) and Haiduan (海端) townships.
Shaking was felt as far away as Taipei and Kaohsiung, with residents posting videos on social media of light fixtures swaying.
Photo courtesy of a member of the public
A 36-year-old man sustained injuries in Taoyuan’s Bade Civil Sports Center when part of the ceiling fell on a badminton court, the Taoyuan Fire Department said.
Isolated power outages were also reported in Taipei, Tainan, Kaohsiung, New Taipei City and Taitung County.
The Japan Meteorological Agency issued a tsunami advisory for several islands in Japan’s Okinawa Prefecture near Taiwan, but later lifted it.
Photo: CNA
The magnitude 6.4 foreshock on Saturday night also caused damage to facilities in Taitung, including in Taitung City, and in Guanshan, Chihshang and Luye townships.
An 80-year-old colonial-era house in Taitung City, as well as the 68-year-old Wanan Brick Kilns in Chihshang were damaged. Hundreds of urns in a columbarium in Luye were damaged. In Guanshan, a rice mill and a concrete plant were damaged.
Additional reporting by agencies
NO HUMAN ERROR: After the incident, the Coast Guard Administration said it would obtain uncrewed aerial vehicles and vessels to boost its detection capacity Authorities would improve border control to prevent unlawful entry into Taiwan’s waters and safeguard national security, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday after a Chinese man reached the nation’s coast on an inflatable boat, saying he “defected to freedom.” The man was found on a rubber boat when he was about to set foot on Taiwan at the estuary of Houkeng River (後坑溪) near Taiping Borough (太平) in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口), authorities said. The Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) northern branch said it received a report at 6:30am yesterday morning from the New Taipei City Fire Department about a
IN BEIJING’S FAVOR: A China Coast Guard spokesperson said that the Chinese maritime police would continue to carry out law enforcement activities in waters it claims The Philippines withdrew its coast guard vessel from a South China Sea shoal that has recently been at the center of tensions with Beijing. BRP Teresa Magbanua “was compelled to return to port” from Sabina Shoal (Xianbin Shoal, 仙濱暗沙) due to bad weather, depleted supplies and the need to evacuate personnel requiring medical care, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela said yesterday in a post on X. The Philippine vessel “will be in tiptop shape to resume her mission” after it has been resupplied and repaired, Philippine Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who heads the nation’s maritime council, said
CHINA POLICY: At the seventh US-EU Dialogue on China, the two sides issued strong support for Taiwan and condemned China’s actions in the South China Sea The US and EU issued a joint statement on Wednesday supporting Taiwan’s international participation, notably omitting the “one China” policy in a departure from previous similar statements, following high-level talks on China and the Indo-Pacific region. The statement also urged China to show restraint in the Taiwan Strait. US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and European External Action Service Secretary-General Stefano Sannino cochaired the seventh US-EU Dialogue on China and the sixth US-EU Indo-Pacific Consultations from Monday to Tuesday. Since the Indo-Pacific consultations were launched in 2021, references to the “one China” policy have appeared in every statement apart from the
More than 500 people on Saturday marched in New York in support of Taiwan’s entry to the UN, significantly more people than previous years. The march, coinciding with the ongoing 79th session of the UN General Assembly, comes close on the heels of growing international discourse regarding the meaning of UN Resolution 2758. Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative of China.” It resulted in the Republic of China (ROC) losing its seat at the UN to the PRC. Taiwan has since been excluded from