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Rescue workers are searching for survivors in Hualien after the quake
Photo: AFP
According to official information, a total of 77 people are trapped in a tunnel after the earthquake off the east coast of Taiwan - including two German citizens. The two Germans are therefore in the Chongde Tunnel, which is located in Taroko National Park. The authorities initially did not provide any information about the condition of the two.
The national park is located north of the city of Hualien, where the quake caused severe damage on Wednesday morning (local time). According to authorities, 60 of those buried are in a tunnel north of the city of Hualien in the sparsely populated mountain region of the same name. This was particularly badly affected by the earthquake.
The death toll has now risen to at least seven. At least 736 other people were injured in the quake, according to new information from the Taiwan Fire Department. The quake had a magnitude of 7.4, according to the US Earthquake Monitoring Agency (USGS), and temporarily triggered tsunami warnings in southern Japan and the Philippines. According to the Taiwan Earthquake Observatory, it was the strongest earthquake on the island in a quarter of a century.
Numerous buildings were severely damaged. However, strict building regulations were apparently able to prevent a major disaster. Around 25 years ago, in September 1999, around 2,400 people were killed in a magnitude 7.6 earthquake in Taiwan. It was the most serious natural disaster in the island's history.
has/AFP/dpa/Reuters