7.4-magnitude earthquake strikes Taiwan, triggers tsunami warnings in Japan

Taiwan hit by 7.4-magnitude earthquake on 3 April

A 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck Taiwan at 7:58am Singapore Time on Wednesday (3 April).

According to data from the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the quake was centred off the coast of Hualien City.

Source: Reuters

Neighbouring countries like Japan have also issued tsunami warnings as a result.

1 death reported, buildings in Hualien uprooted & toppled over

Due to the quake’s impact, some structures in Hualien were uprooted.

A picture uploaded by user @peter74524409 on X shows a building that had tilted over as a result of the quake.

Debris had also accumulated at the foot of the building.

Source: @peter74524409 on X

Another clip showed vehicles trapped under a collapsed shelter.

Source: @alamg5888 on X

Taiwanese broadcasting company TVBS reported that the disaster in the location was “very severe”.

Moreover, the quake caused part of the nearby Turtle Island in Yilan, an iconic tourist spot, to break off.

Source: TVBS

Citing Taiwan’s fire department, Reuters reported that the quake has claimed one life so far.

The victim was believed to have died after being crushed by falling rocks in Hualien.

More than 50 people have been injured as well.

Internet outages reported, Taiwan’s high speed rail suspended

Based on reports by Internet observatory NetBlocks on X, internet and power outages were registered in certain parts of Taiwan.

These include Hualien City, New Taipei, Neihu District, and Yingge District.

Source: @netblocks on X

The tremors also triggered the suspension of metro systems in Taipei, Taichung, and Kaohsiung, Focus Taiwan reported.

On the Wenhu Line or Brown Line in Taipei, the metro was captured shaking violently, with commuters clutching tightly onto the railings.

Additionally, The New York Times noted that school was cancelled in Hualien County.

Tsunami warnings issued in Japan & Philippines

Neighbouring countries were also impacted by the quake.

In particular, tsunami waves measuring up to 3m are expected to hit Japan’s southwestern coast, Reuters reported.

An evacuation advisory was issued in the southern prefecture of Okinawa.

In the Philippines, tsunami warnings were also issued for four provinces in the north.

Also read: Parts of Japan including Tokyo hit by magnitude 5.3 earthquake

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Featured image adapted from @peter74524409 on X and @ssbuBanjo on X.