6.4-magnitude earthquake in Hualien claims several lives, dozens remain missing

The tragic event of 6.4-magnitutde earthquake which struck in the popular eastern tourist city of Hualien on Tuesday, 6 February claimed several lives.

According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the quake hit the island nation 11:50 pm (local time) (3.50pm GMT) on Tuesday, around 21 kilometres, northeast of the port city of Hualien.

It is said to be the strongest earthquake to hit Hualien in the last five decades, according to Fu Kun-Chi, the head of Hualien County. Around 200 aftershocks have been reported since then. The city is said to be vulnerable to frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

The rescue authorities reported that 265 people have been injured injured and 62 remain missing so far. Three people among the deceased belonged to mainland China, while the remaining were from Taiwan.

A female tourist from Fujian Province in China, who was rescued from the same building, was declared brought dead when authorities shifted her to a local hospital. The death toll is on continuous rise as the local authorities are discovering the bodies.

Also, a number of buildings have been severely damaged as the earthquake struck at a depth of around 23 km. They are leaning at terrifying angles and the city roads have been cracked too.

The people of city are struggling to cope up with the devastating floods that have struck hard along its major regions. Majority of the deaths and cases of people missing were recorded in the Yun Tsui apartment block.

The rescue team pulled out a few bodies from the damaged building on Thursday. However, a number of people are still missing.

“We discovered the body of a Chinese woman at the hotel in Yun Tsui (building) earlier this morning and located another person who’s a hotel staffer,” said Chu Che-min, the Hualien fire department’s rescue team leader.

A female tourist from Fujian Province in China was also among the people rescued from the building. However, she was declared dead on being rushed to a local hospital by the authorities.

Yet another strong earthquake with 6.1 magnitude struck off the coast of Hualien on February 4.

Two years back, an earthquake of same magnitude stuck 28 km northeast of Pingtung city in southern Taiwan. It also caused several deaths and destruction, killing 117 people and injuring more than 550 people.