By Nectar Gan, Wayne Chang, Jerome Taylor, Antoinette Radford, Deva Lee and Maureen Chowdhury, CNN
At least nine people have died after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck the east coast of Taiwan on Wednesday, the strongest in 25 years.
Rescuers are working to free dozens trapped after the quake caused landslides and collapsed structures. More than 900 others are injured and over 100 buildings have been damaged, according to authorities.
The quake was followed by strong aftershocks, including a 6.5 magnitude tremor. Multiple aftershocks as strong as magnitude 7 are expected in the coming days.
Taiwan, Japan and the Philippines have all canceled tsunami warnings issued after the quake hit.
The epicenter, Hualien County, is home to around 300,000 of the 23 million people who live in Taiwan, a self-ruled democracy with an outsized impact on global business and trade.
Rescue workers stand near the site of a leaning building in the aftermath of an earthquake in Hualien, Taiwan, on April 3. Johnson Lai/AP
Rescuers are working to free dozens trapped after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck the east coast of Taiwan — causing landslides and collapsed structures.
At least nine people have died, more than 900 others are injured and over 100 buildings have been damaged.
The quake is the strongest to hit Taiwan in 25 years.
Here’s what else we know:
The quake: The earthquake hit at 7:58 a.m. local time, 18 kilometers (11 miles) south of the city of Hualien at a depth of 34.8 kilometers, according to the US Geological Survey.
Aftershocks: The quake was followed by 29 aftershocks greater than a magnitude of 4.0 near the epicenter of the earthquake in east Taiwan so far, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Tremors have been felt across the island, including in Taipei. Tremors as high as magnitude 7 are expected in the following days.
Hualien County: The region where the quake struck, Hualien County, has a population of about 300,000, around 100,000 of whom live in the main city of Hualien. But many in the region live in remote coastal or mountain communities that can be hard to reach, so it might take time to understand the extent of Wednesday’s quake.
Trapped miners: Taiwan’s national fire agency said that 71 people are trapped in two mines in Hualien.
Power cuts: More than 91,000 households were without electricity, according to Taiwan’s Central Emergency Command Center.
Medical facilities: Hospitals across Taiwan’s capital, Taipei City, are operating normally despite being damaged by Wednesday’s earthquake, according to the Municipal Government.
Taiwan’s national fire agency said that 71 people are trapped in two mines in Hualien after a powerful earthquake struck the island.
In the Heping mine, there are 64 people trapped, and seven more are trapped in the Zhonghe mine, the fire agency said in a news conference on Wednesday.