Taipei, April 3 (Reuters/GNA) – Taiwan’s biggest earthquake in at least 25 years killed nine people on Wednesday, injuring more than 800, while 50 went missing en route to a national park, authorities said, as rescuers used ladders to bring others to safety.
Television broadcast images of buildings tilted at precarious angles in the mountainous, sparsely populated eastern county of Hualien, near the epicentre of the 7.2 magnitude quake, which struck just offshore at about 8 a. m. (0000GMT).
“It was very strong. It felt as if the house was going to topple,” said Chang Yu-lin, 60, a worker in a hospital in Taipei, the capital.
A woman who runs bed-and-breakfast accommodation in Hualien city said she scrambled to calm her guests who were frightened by the quake.
“This is the biggest earthquake I have ever experienced,” said the woman, who asked to be identified only by her family name, Chan.
The quake hit at a depth of 15.5 km (9.6 miles), just as people were headed for work and school, setting off a tsunami warning for southern Japan and the Philippines that was later lifted.
Video showed rescuers using ladders to help trapped people out of windows, while elsewhere there were massive landslides, as strong tremors in Taipei forced the subway system to close briefly, although most lines resumed service.
Fire authorities said they were slowly evacuating some of those trapped in tunnels near Hualien city, including two Germans.
GNA/Credit: Reuters