Taiwan Earthquake Live: More than 50 aftershocks registered in Taipei

Japan’s weather agency said several small tsunami waves reached parts of the southern prefecture of Okinawa, and later downgraded the earlier tsunami warning to an advisory. It put the earthquake’s magnitude at 7.7. The Philippines Seismology Agency also issued a warning for residents in coastal areas of several provinces, urging them to evacuate to higher ground. Taiwan also issued a tsunami warning, but reported no damage from that, and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii later said the risk of damaging tsunami waves had passed. Aftershocks could still be felt in Taipei, with more than 50 aftershocks registered, according to Taiwan’s central weather administration.

Taiwan Earthquake Live: Asian shares fall as US yields hold near 4-month high, earthquake hits

In Asia, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.7%. Japan’s Nikkei dropped 0.8%, after a 20% blockbuster rally in the first quarter. Taiwan’s shares skidded 0.5% after a 7.2 magnitude earthquake rocked the island, collapsing buildings, killing at least four people and injuring dozens.

Taiwan Earthquake Live: Strongest aftershocks to shake the island in decades

Officials said the quake and series of aftershocks was the strongest to shake the island in decades, and warned of more tremors in the days ahead. “The earthquake is close to land and it’s shallow. It’s felt all over Taiwan and offshore islands,” said Wu Chien-fu, director of Taipei’s Central Weather Administration’s Seismology Center. Strict building regulations and disaster awareness appear to have staved off a major catastrophe for the island, which is regularly hit by earthquakes as it lies near the junction of two tectonic plates.

Taiwan Earthquake Live: Japan ready to give assistance to Taiwan after quake, PM Kishida says

Japan stands ready to provide any assistance necessary to Taiwan following a massive earthquake on Wednesday, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida posted on his official account on X. Kishida said on the social media platform that he was deeply saddened to hear about the earthquake and referred to Taiwan as Japan’s “neighbor across the sea”.

In pics: Strong earthquake jolts Taiwan; several building collapsed, train services halted

Taipei’s Seismology Centre director Wu Chien-fu said that the earthquake in Taiwan on Wednesday is ‘the strongest in 25 years’. “The earthquake is close to land and it’s shallow. It’s felt all over Taiwan and offshore islands… it’s the strongest in 25 years since the (1999) earthquake,” said Wu Chien-fu.

Taiwan Earthquake Live: At least four dead in Taiwan after strongest quake in nearly 25 years, fire agency says

A 7.2 magnitude earthquake rocked Taiwan on Wednesday, the strongest tremor to hit the island in at least 25 years, killing four people, injuring dozens and sparking a tsunami warning for southern Japan and the Philippines that was later lifted. Taiwan’s government said four people had died in the mountainous, sparsely populated eastern county of Hualien where the epicentre was, with more than 50 injured. At least 26 buildings have collapsed, more than half in Hualien, with about 20 people trapped and rescue work on-going, it said.

Taiwan Earthquake Live: Emergency helpline for Indian nationals living in Taiwan

Japan Earthquake Live: Japan lifts tsunami advisory, Okinawa flights resume

Japan lifted a tsunami advisory on Wednesday and check-in resumed at Okinawa’s main airport where flights had been suspended following a powerful earthquake in Taiwan. The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), which had initially warned of a risk of tsunami waves up to three metres (10 feet) high in the southern island region of Okinawa, said much smaller waves had been recorded in several locations. On Yonaguni Island, close to Taiwan, waves of up to 30 centimetres (12 inches) arrived at 9:18 am Japan time (0018 GMT), 18 minutes after the earthquake hit.