Fears of bigger shocks to come as Taiwan is hit by earthquake

A magnitude 5.6 earthquake shook buildings in Taiwan on Thursday morning as a series of shocks hit the island, causing little damage but possibly portending more seismic activity in the near future.

The biggest of the quakes hit at 10.11am in Chiayi county’s Dapu township at a depth of six miles, according to the Central Weather Agency (CWA) and the US Geological Survey.

The epicentre was about 155 miles south of the capital, Taipei, where buildings swayed slightly.

That was followed shortly afterward by at least a dozen smaller quakes in Dapu. No damage or casualties were immediately reported.

All were aftershocks from a magnitude 6.4 earthquake that struck Dapu on January 21 and sent 15 people to the hospital with minor injuries and damaged buildings and a highway bridge.

Last April, a magnitude 7.4 quake hit the island’s mountainous eastern coastal county of Hualien, killing at least 13 people, injuring more than 1,000 others, collapsing a hotel and forcing the closure of Toroko national park.

That was the strongest earthquake in 25 years and was followed by hundreds of aftershocks.

Taiwan is going through a period of increased seismic activity that could lead to further aftershocks or new quakes, according to the CWA and earthquake experts.

Taiwan lies along the Pacific ring of fire, the line of seismic faults encircling the Pacific Ocean from Chile to New Zealand where most of the world’s earthquakes occur.

A 1999 magnitude 7.7 quake killed 2,415 people, damaged buildings around the island of 23 million people and led to tightened building codes, better response times and co-ordination and widespread public education campaigns on earthquake safety.

Schools and workplaces hold earthquake drills, while mobile phones sound alerts whenever a strong earthquake is detected.