Sunday, 20 December 2009

Powerful Earthquake Rocks Taiwan



A powerful earthquake rattled the nation last night, shaking buildings throughout the country and causing minor damage. The temblor struck at 9:02pm on the 19th December and measured 6.8 on the Richter scale, the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) said. The epicenter was 25.5km off the coast of southeast Hualien County at a depth of 45.9km, the CWB said.

The earthquake was felt nationwide with an intensity of seven in Hualien, Taitung and Yilan, five in Yunlin and Chiayi, and four in Taipei, Hsinchu and Taoyuan. High-speed rail services and Taipei’s MRT were temporarily stopped while TV news reports said four car accidents occurred in Taipei as a result of the tremor. Local cable TV reports said that a building had collapsed in Taipei County’s Tucheng (土城), although it couldn’t be confirmed as of press time.

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