Taiwan's biggest earthquake in at least 25 years killed nine people on Wednesday, injuring more than 800, while 50 went missing on their way to a national park, authorities said.
Television broadcast images of buildings leaning at precarious angles in mountainous, sparsely populated Hualien County, near the epicenter of the magnitude 7.2 earthquake.
“It was very strong. It felt like the house was going to fall down,” said Chang Yu-lin, 60, a hospital worker in Taipei, the capital.
A woman who runs a guesthouse in the city of Hualien said she struggled to calm her guests who were frightened by the earthquake.
“This is the biggest earthquake I have ever faced,” said the woman, who asked to be identified only by her family name, Chan.
The earthquake struck at a depth of 15.5 km (9.6 miles) just as people were heading to work and school, triggering a tsunami warning for southern Japan and the Philippines, which was later lifted.
Video showed rescuers using ladders to help people trapped outside windows, while elsewhere there were landslides, while strong tremors in Taipei forced the subway system to briefly close, although most lines have resumed service.
Authorities said they were slowly evacuating some of those trapped in tunnels near the city of Hualien, including two Germans.
But they lost contact with 50 travelers aboard four minibuses heading to a hotel in a national park, Taroko Gorge, they said, without giving details.
The government put the number of injured at 821.
“Right now, the most important thing, the top priority, is rescuing people,” said President-elect Lai Ching-te, speaking outside one of the collapsed buildings in Hualien.
The rail link to the area was expected to reopen on Thursday, Lai, who is expected to take up the role next month, told reporters.
Taiwan's Air Force said six F-16 fighter jets were slightly damaged at a large base in the city, from which jets are often deployed to fend off incursions by China's Air Force, but the aircraft were expected to return to service soon.
In Japan, the meteorological agency put the earthquake's magnitude at 7.7, saying several small tsunami waves hit parts of southern Okinawa prefecture, while lowering its tsunami warning to a warning.
In the Philippines, authorities warned coastal residents in several provinces to move to higher ground.
Chinese state media said the earthquake was felt in the southeastern province of Fujian, while a Reuters witness said it was also felt in the commercial hub of Shanghai.
Aftershocks could still be felt in Taipei, with more than 50 reported, weather officials said.
Most power was restored after the earthquake, Taipower said, with the island's two nuclear plants unaffected.
Taiwan's high-speed train operator said no damage or injuries were reported to its trains, although services were delayed while carrying out inspections.
A major chip supplier for Apple AAPL. O and Nvidia NVDA. The company, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co 2330.TW, said it has emptied some factories.
“To ensure the safety of personnel, some factories were evacuated in accordance with company procedure,” the semiconductor giant said in a statement, later adding that employees had begun returning to work.
The official central news agency said the earthquake was the largest since a 7.6 magnitude earthquake in 1999 that killed about 2,400 people and damaged or destroyed 50,000 buildings.
Taiwan meteorological authorities classified Wednesday's earthquake in Hualien as “Upper 6”, or the second highest level of intensity on a scale ranging from 1 to 7.
Such earthquakes collapse walls unless they are made of reinforced concrete blocks, while people cannot stand and must crawl to move, experts say.
Source: CNN Brasil

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