Taiwan’s capital, Taipei, was rocked by a series of powerful earthquakes overnight and into the early hours of Tuesday. The Central Weather Administration reported that the strongest tremor, measuring a magnitude of 6.3, originated in eastern Hualien.
The first significant quake, a magnitude 5.5, struck on Monday evening, followed by a series of aftershocks and intense tremors in the early hours of Tuesday. Witnesses in Taipei reported feeling their buildings swaying and hearing the sound of glass panels and windows rattling during the quakes.
Tourists and residents alike were caught off guard by the sudden shaking, with one tourist describing feeling vertigo before realizing it was another aftershock. The US Geological Survey reported the first quake as a magnitude 6.1, followed by a magnitude 6.0.
The Hualien region, which was the epicenter of a magnitude 7.4 quake on April 3 that resulted in 17 fatalities, was once again at the center of the seismic activity. The latest quakes prompted the dispatch of teams to inspect for any new disasters, with no casualties reported as of early Tuesday morning.
Taiwan, located at the junction of two tectonic plates, experiences frequent earthquakes. The strict building regulations and public disaster awareness in the region have helped mitigate the impact of recent quakes, including the deadly 1999 earthquake that claimed the lives of 2,400 people. The latest tremors serve as a reminder of the constant threat of seismic activity in the region.