A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.1 has struck the eastern coast of Taiwan, causing some damage and injuring at least 17 people, officials say. Shaking was felt in the capital Taipei.
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The earthquake, which happened at 1:01 p.m. local time on Thursday, was centered about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) northwest of Hualien City. It struck at a depth of 18 kilometers (11 miles), making it a very shallow earthquake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Central Weather Bureau and the U.S. Geological Survey put the preliminary magnitude at 6.1. The Weather Bureau said the maximum intensity of 7 was recorded in parts of Hualien County.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Panicked residents rushed onto the street in a number of cities and footage shown on local TV showed damage to buildings. At least 17 people were injured, including a 40-year-old Malaysian tourist who was seriously hurt by falling rocks at Taroko National Park.
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“It was big and kept shaking for almost 30 seconds,” a resident in the Dali District said. In Taipei, where the intensity reached 5, residents also described feeling a strong earthquake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“At first there was a slight rumble at which I thought I noticed something strange, this was followed by a strong violent shake which made everyone pretty concerned,” said Hsu Tzu-Ting in Bali District, near Taipei. “The chandeliers swung around for a few minutes afterwards.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Taiwan, located along the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, is at times rattled by moderate to strong earthquakes. A powerful 7.6-magnitude earthquake struck central Taiwan in 1999, killing at least 2,297 people and injuring nearly 9,000 others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n