International

Woman crushed to death in Taiwan earthquake after returning to rescue pet cat

Woman dies after returning to save pet cat following Taiwan earthquake

A woman in Taiwan was crushed to death in her attempt to save her pet cat after the 7.4-magnitude earthquake that struck on Wednesday (3 April).

The 33-year-old was found dead under the uprooted Uranus building on Xuanyuan Road in Hualien, Focus Taiwan reported.

Source: Focus Taiwan

24 other individuals were rescued from the collapsed structure.

Aftershock caused woman to be trapped under building’s column

SET News reported that the deceased, surnamed Kang, initially escaped the earthquake unscathed.

Despite this, she informed her neighbours that she was returning to the building to rescue her cat.

Just as she entered the block through a side door, an aftershock hit and she went missing.

Firefighters subsequently discovered her body trapped under a column and pronounced her dead at the scene.

Ms Kang was reportedly an agricultural teacher at a senior high school.

Source: Shin Min Daily News on Facebook

“We advised her not to go in, but she went anyway,” the Uranus building chairperson commented in an interview with TVBS News. “The outcome is deeply painful.”

Uranus building is one of several that was struck

According to Reuters, Deputy Acting Chief of Hualien Fire Department, Lee Lung-Sheng, noted that the Uranus building is “a very badly damaged place”.

 

“It is a building with one basement level and nine floors above ground,” he said. “The first and second floors are now underground.”

Out of those who were rescued from the building, four needed to be hospitalised.

The structure, which did not have ground-floor front pillars, is set to be demolished.

Following the quake, Taiwan was rocked by over 360 aftershocks.

Apart from the Uranus building, Hualien saw other collapsed structures, including a tilted five-storey family home on Beibin Street.

Source: Focus Taiwan

Vehicles were trapped under the building’s collapsed shelter.

The death toll as a result of the quake has risen to at least 10, with many others still missing, stranded or trapped.

Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.

Featured image adapted from Shin Min Daily News on Facebook and Focus Taiwan.

Amber Ang

Amber is an unapologetic fangirl and a huge Swiftie.

Recent Posts

Family in S’pore finds snake on side view mirror mid-drive, netizens quip ‘Snake Year is coming’

The Paradise Tree Snake may have misjudged its landing and ended up on the car.

23 Dec 2024, 4:48 pm

69-year-old man dies after fight with 71-year-old neighbour over bumping into each other

The 69-year-old was reportedly upset over his neighbour's refusal to apologise.

23 Dec 2024, 4:33 pm

Bloomberg issued POFMA order over S’pore GCB transactions article, Govt addresses ‘falsehoods’

False claims include that GCB transactions occur without government checks on beneficial owners' identities.

23 Dec 2024, 3:35 pm

Woman set on fire aboard New York subway train, suspect allegedly watches her burn

The suspect casually watched as the woman became consumed by flames.

23 Dec 2024, 3:14 pm

Elderly man pickpocketed on bus from JB to S’pore, loses S$450 & has S$800 charged to credit card

The thief left the wallet and more than RM200 behind, presumably to mislead the 72-year-old…

23 Dec 2024, 1:38 pm