Three dead as buildings collapse after 'enormous' 6.4 magnitude Taiwan earthquake
TAIPEI (92 News) – At least three people have been killed and dozens more are feared dead after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake shook Taiwan toppling buildings on Saturday.
Rescuers in the southern Taiwanese city of Tainan pulled out 221 people and three dead from a residential high-rise complex that collapsed when a shallow 6.4-magnitude earthquake struck before dawn Saturday, leaving still others trapped inside.
Firefighters and soldiers scrambled with ladders, cranes and other equipment to the building that folded like an accordion in a pile of rubble and twisted metal and extracted dazed survivors.
The quake, initially reported as a magnitude 6.7, was struck 27 miles southeast of the city – in which nearly two million people leave. The quake was described as "enormous" and a "big one" on social networking sites.
The earthquake caused buildings to sway and doors and windows to crack. Taiwan's Central Weather Bureau also measured a second quake of 4.3 magnitude centered in Tainan. It's believed a third quake measuring 4.5 also hit southern Taiwan. The first quake was felt as a lengthy, rolling shake in the capital, Taipei, on the other side of the island.