Welcome and opening summary
A powerful earthquake has hit off the coast of Taiwan, rocking the entire island and collapsing buildings in at least one town. I’m Reged Ahmad and I’ll be with you for the next while.
Japan issued a tsunami alert for the southern Japanese island group of Okinawa, according to Associated Press.
More on that in a moment but first – here’s a summary of what we know so far:
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Japan’s meteorological agency forecast a tsunami of up to 3 meters, or 9.8 feet for some areas.
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The Japan Meteorological Agency reported that a 30cm tsunami reached Yonaguni Island at 9:18 am (0018 GMT), Reuters reports.
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Taiwan’s earthquake monitoring agency gave the magnitude as 7.2 while the US Geological Survey put it at 7.5.
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Television have shown buildings in the eastern city of Hualien shaken off their foundations.
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The quake came at 7:58am local time and could be felt in the capital Taipei.
Key events
Reports of 1 dead, 50 injured – Taiwan fire department
We are getting our first casualty figures coming through. The Reuters news agency is reporting that one person has died and more than 50 people are injured after the earthquake – that’s according to the Taiwan fire department.
We’ll bring you more when we get it.
Another image coming through, this time of a landslide from Xiulin, just off the eastern coast of Taiwan:
Our Guardian reporter Chi Hui Lin has sent us more on the aftermath from people in Hualien. The epicentre has been reported as 25km southeast of the city.
A hotel in Hualien City told me that people in Hualien know that sometimes there will be big earthquakes, so the items in the house are fixed.
They didn’t run out immediately when the earthquake happened but waited for it to get smaller before going out to avoid falling. There was little damage in her hotel, just a few items falling down.
Another Stand Up Paddling shop in Hualien told me that the people of Hualien have experienced many earthquakes, and when this earthquake happened, they knew it was a big one, so they rushed out.
He said that many buildings in Hualien are now evacuating their residents.
He was driving his car near the mountains when the earthquake happened, and there were a lot of falling rocks.
When he was talking to me, the sound of ambulances passing by was in the background.
Pacific tsunami warning centre says threat passed
The tsunami threat from the earthquake has now passed according to the Pacific tsunami warning center.
The centre’s website has a post saying “No tsunami warning, advisory, watch or threat” on the Taiwan quake.
Some more of the latest images coming in from the earthquake to hit Taiwan:
Japan tsunami alert downgraded to advisory
Justin McCurry
The tsunami waves that had arrived by late morning were not as high as forecast, and the alert was downgraded to an advisory.
But an official from Japan’s meteorological agency urged people to continue evacuating until the advisory was lifted.
Public broadcaster NHK said some residents of the main Okinawa island had evacuated to a nearby US military base, while footage showed others watching the sea from the safety of high ground in the prefectural capital Naha.
87,000 in Taiwan without power
Taiwan’s electricity operator – Taipower- has said more than 87,000 people across the country are now without power, according to the Reuters news agency.
Earlier we were hearing that 10,000 households were without power and it was reported that restoration operations were currently underway.
Aftershocks reported in Taipei
Buildings in Taipei have continued to shake after an aftershock, according to the Reuters news agency.
Meanwhile, Japan’s Meterological Agency is warning people to be vigilant for aftershocks of similar intensity for around a week.
Worst quake since 1999 – Taiwan central weather bureau
Here is the latest from our reporter Gregor Hunter in Taipei on what Taiwan’s central weather bureau says is the country’s worse quake since 1999:
Violent shaking was felt in the capital Taipei, with aftershocks continuing throughout the day.
The quake struck during the morning rush hour, prompting a brief suspension of the city’s subway service, and some offices and schools said they would send staff home for the day.
Philippines tsunami warning relates to coastal areas
Rebecca Ratcliffe
Our south-east Asia correspondent Rebecca Ratcliffe has more detail on the warnings in the Philippines:
The tsunami warning issued by the Philippine authorities relates to people in coastal areas of the following provinces: the Batanes Group of Islands, Cagayan, Ilocos Norte and Isabela.
The Batanes island group is the northernmost province of the Philippines, and is closer to Taiwan than to the northern tip of Luzon, the Philippines’ largest and most populous island, which sits at the northern part of the archipelago. Cagayan, Ilocos Norte and Isabela are all located in the north of Luzon.
Residents in these coastal areas of these provinces have been “strongly advised” to immediately evacuate to higher grounds or move farther inland.
Magnitude revised up – JMA
In the latest – the Japan Meteorological Agency has revised up Taiwan’s earthquake magnitude to 7.7, from 7.5, according to the Reuters news agency.
Another image coming out of Taiwan shows how buildings have been affected, this one is leaning on its side, appearing to be almost at a 45 degree angle:
10,000 households without power – reports
Taiwan’s central news agency is reporting that nearly 10,00 households are without power with restoration operations currently under way.
Meanwhile, some of the first video of the aftermath is being posted on social media – this is also from central news agency:
More images from Hualien are coming in:
Epicentre reported as 25km southeast of Hualien
According to Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration, the epicentre of the quake was 25km southeast of Hualien:
Reports computer chip factory partially evacuated
Bloomberg is reporting that the world’s largest producer of advanced chips has evacuated some factory areas.
The financial publisher said the move could endanger production at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.
Reports of damage to houses and water towers – Taiwan
Our Guardian reporter Chi Hui Lin has sent this from Miaoli, one hour’s drive from Taipei:
Wednesday morning’s earthquake was the strongest since the 921 quake in 1999. Aftershocks continued to occur between 8 and 9 a.m.
Social media was full of earthquake posts, with friends sharing information about their homes.
Tiles peeled off the exteriors of old houses in Taipei City, water towers cracked, glass shattered and items fell.
Teachers on campus took their students to an open area for shelter.
At 8 am the phone rang with a tsunami alert: the earthquake-induced tsunami was expected to affect the coastal areas at 9:59am.
Internet outages reported in Taiwan
Global internet monitor Netblocks has said that internet outages are being registered in parts of Taiwan after the quake.
In a post on X the group said:
The decline in network connectivity comes amid reports of power outages with a tsunami warning issued; nuclear regulator observes no issues with reactors at present
⚠ Confirmed: Internet outages have been registered in parts of #Taiwan after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake; the decline in network connectivity comes amid reports of power outages with a tsunami warning issued; nuclear regulator observes no issues with reactors at present 📉 pic.twitter.com/7hERFHXU87
— NetBlocks (@netblocks) April 3, 2024
