On 3 April 2024, at 07:58:11 NST (23:58:11 UTC on 2 April), a 7.4

earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...

struck south of Hualien City, Hualien County,

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. At least 18 people were killed and over 1,100 were injured in the earthquake. It is the strongest earthquake in Taiwan since the

1999 Jiji earthquake The Chi-Chi earthquake (later also known as the Jiji earthquake) (), also known as the great earthquake of September 21 (), was a 7.3 ML or 7.7 Mw earthquake which occurred in Jiji (Chi-Chi), Nantou County, Taiwan on Tuesday, 21 Se ...

, with three aftershocks above M_w 6.0.

Tectonic setting

Taiwan has a history of strong earthquakes. The island is located within a complex zone of convergence between the

Philippine Sea Plate The Philippine Sea Plate or the Philippine Plate is a tectonic plate comprising oceanic lithosphere that lies beneath the Philippine Sea, to the east of the Philippines. Most segments of the Philippines, including northern Luzon, are part of ...

and

Eurasian Plate The Eurasian Plate is a tectonic plate that includes most of the continent of Eurasia (a landmass consisting of the traditional continents of Europe and Asia), with the notable exceptions of the Indian subcontinent, the Arabian subcontinent and ...

. At the location of the earthquake, these plates converge at a rate of per year. To the south of Taiwan,

oceanic crust Oceanic crust is the uppermost layer of the oceanic portion of the tectonic plates. It is composed of the upper oceanic crust, with pillow lavas and a dike complex, and the lower oceanic crust, composed of troctolite, gabbro and ultramafic cumu ...

of the Eurasian Plate is subducting beneath the Philippine Sea Plate creating an island arc, the Luzon Arc. At Taiwan, the oceanic crust has all been subducted and the arc is colliding with continental crust of the Eurasian Plate. To the north of Taiwan, the Philippine Sea Plate is in contrast subducting beneath the Eurasian Plate, forming the Ryukyu Arc.

Earthquake

Taiwan's

Central Weather Administration The Central Weather Administration (CWA; ) is the government meteorological research and forecasting institution of the Republic of China (Taiwan). In addition to meteorology, the Central Weather Administration also makes astronomical observatio ...

(CWA) measured the earthquake's local magnitude at 7.2, while the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

(USGS) placed the earthquake at 7.4. It was the strongest earthquake to hit Taiwan since the

, which measured 7.7. At least 1,400 aftershocks were recorded following the earthquake. A 6.4 aftershock struck at 00:11 UTC, followed by a 5.7 event at 00:35, a 5.5 at 00:43 and a 5.7 at 00:46. On 22 April, a 5.8 event struck at 14:11, followed in the evening (early morning of 23 April NST) by two large aftershocks that occurred south of Hualien City, both of them measuring 6.1. A 5.7 aftershock occurred near Taroko National Park on 26 April. The earthquake had a maximum CWA seismic intensity of 6+ in Hualien City and 5- in

Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the n ...

. Intensity 4 or higher was felt across much of the island except its southern extent, which felt intensities 2 to 3. In

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

, shaking was felt in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

Suzhou Suzhou (; ; Suzhounese: ''sou¹ tseu¹'' , Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Soochow, is a major city in southern Jiangsu province, East China. Suzhou is the largest city in Jiangsu, and a major economic center and focal point of trade ...

Shenzhen Shenzhen (; ; ; ), also historically known as Sham Chun, is a major sub-provincial city and one of the special economic zones of China. The city is located on the east bank of the Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern province ...

Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kon ...

Shantou Shantou, alternately romanized as Swatow and sometimes known as Santow, is a prefecture-level city on the eastern coast of Guangdong, China, with a total population of 5,502,031 as of the 2020 census (5,391,028 in 2010) and an administrative ...

, and parts of

Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capi ...

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiang ...

, and

Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, Postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an Eastern China, eastern coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is o ...

provinces. It was also felt in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

and on the island of

Yonaguni , one of the Yaeyama Islands, is the westernmost inhabited island of Japan, lying from the east coast of Taiwan, between the East China Sea and the Pacific Ocean proper. The island is administered as the Towns of Japan, town of Yonaguni, Okina ...

, Japan, where it measured ''Shindo'' 4 on the Japan Meteorological Agency seismic intensity scale. The earthquake had a

focal mechanism The focal mechanism of an earthquake describes the deformation in the source region that generates the seismic waves. In the case of a fault-related event it refers to the orientation of the fault plane that slipped and the slip vector and is ...

corresponding to reverse-faulting at a depth. According to the USGS, the rupture occurred on a northeast–southwest-striking, moderately dipping, reverse fault within the Eurasian Plate. The estimated rupture dimensions for a similarly sized reverse-faulting earthquake is by . Its finite fault model indicated rupture on an east-southeast dipping plane. The slip occurred within an elliptical rupture area by on the plane. The maximum displacement was estimated at . The shock's magnitude was identical to a 1986 earthquake that killed 15 people in Hualien. The China Earthquake Administration (PRC) estimated the earthquake rupture process did not exceed 35 seconds in duration. The slip was distributed across a fault across. According to their finite fault model, slip was mainly concentrated around the epicenter, reaching of maximum displacement. The model's geometry consists of a northeast striking fault dipping at a shallow angle to the northwest. About of slip occurred at the shallow part of the fault that reaches the seafloor off the island's coast.

Tsunami

tsunami A tsunami ( ; from ja, 津波, lit=harbour wave, ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other underwater explo ...

was triggered by the earthquake, with a maximum height of in parts of Hualien City. A wave was observed in

Chenggong, Taitung Chenggong Township or Chengkung Township() is an urban township in Taitung County, Taiwan. It is a coastal town facing the Pacific Ocean. Chenggong Fish Harbor is just west of downtown. History Chenggong was originally an Amis settlement from ...

, while an surge was recorded in

Wushi Harbor The Wushi Harbor () is a harbor in Toucheng Township, Yilan County, Taiwan. History The harbor was inaugurated in 1826. It used to be the commercial hub for cargo ships entering and leaving the area during Qing Dynasty. In 19th century, there ...

. The CWA issued an alert advising residents to evacuate to higher ground. The

Ministry of Natural Resources of the People's Republic of China The Ministry of Natural Resources () is a ministry of the government of the People's Republic of China which is responsible for natural resources in the country. It was formed on 19 March 2018, taking on the responsibilities of the now-defunct ...

issued a second-highest level orange tsunami alert, warning of potential localized waves that could cause significant damage in affected coastal areas. In the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, evacuations were ordered by the

National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), formerly known as the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC), is a working group of various government, non-government, civil sector and private sector organizations o ...

in the provinces of

Batanes Batanes, officially the Province of Batanes ( ivv, Provinsiya nu Batanes; Ilocano: ''Probinsia ti Batanes''; fil, Lalawigan ng Batanes, ), is an archipelagic province in the Philippines, administratively part of the Cagayan Valley region. It i ...

Cagayan Cagayan ( ), officially the Province of Cagayan ( ilo, Probinsia ti Cagayan; ibg, Provinsiya na Cagayan; itv, Provinsiya ya Cagayan; fil, Lalawigan ng Cagayan), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the C ...

, Isabela and Ilocos Norte following a warning by the

Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS, ; tl, Surian ng Pilipinas sa Bulkanolohiya at Sismolohiya) is a Philippine national institution dedicated to provide information on the activities of volcanoes, earthquakes, and ...

(PHIVOLCS). An advisory was issued to 23 provinces for "high tsunami waves" measuring , which was later reduced to . At 10:03 ( PST), the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said "the tsunami threat has now largely passed," prompting PHIVOLCS to cancel the tsunami warning. The

Japan Meteorological Agency The , abbreviated JMA, is an agency of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. It is charged with gathering and providing results for the public in Japan that are obtained from data based on daily scientific observation an ...

issued a tsunami warning for

Okinawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city o ...

and as waves of were expected, which was later downgraded to a "tsunami advisory". A wave was observed at Yonaguni about 15 minutes after the earthquake. Waves were also expected along the Miyako and

Yaeyama Islands The Yaeyama Islands (八重山列島 ''Yaeyama-rettō'', also 八重山諸島 ''Yaeyama-shotō'', Yaeyama: ''Yaima'', Yonaguni: ''Daama'', Okinawan: ''Yeema'', Northern Ryukyuan: ''Yapema'') are an archipelago in the southwest of Okinawa ...

, with -waves reaching the islands of Miyako-jima and Ishigaki. The tsunami warning was the first to be issued in Okinawa Prefecture since the

2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami The occurred at 14:46 JST (05:46 UTC) on 11 March. The magnitude 9.0–9.1 (M) undersea megathrust earthquake had an epicenter in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region, and lasted approximately six minutes ...

, while the tsunami was the first to strike the area since 1998. These warnings prompted flight suspensions in Okinawa and

Kagoshima Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu and the Ryukyu Islands. Kagoshima Prefecture has a population of 1,599,779 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 9,187 km2 (3,547 sq mi). Kagoshima Prefecture borders Kumamoto P ...

s; evacuations to the third floors were held at

Naha Airport is a second class airport located west of the city hallAIS Japan
in

Miyako Airport. The

Japan Self-Defense Forces The Japan Self-Defense Forces ( ja, 自衛隊, Jieitai; abbreviated JSDF), also informally known as the Japanese Armed Forces, are the unified ''de facto''Since Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution outlaws the formation of armed forces, the ...

ordered its air assets at Naha Air Base to fly out or be moved to secure hangars or higher ground to prevent its possible destruction. China's Tsunami Warning Centre, which is under the Ministry of Natural Resources, issued its highest alert level at level 1, or red.

Impact

3 April

Eighteen fatalities were reported, along with a total of 1,145 people injured and 442 others declared stranded. Two people were listed as missing, namely a couple carrying dual Australian and Singaporean nationality. The National Fire Agency recorded at least 1,151 earthquake-related incidents. All fatalities occurred in Hualien County; most of the dead were killed in Taroko National Park, including ten hikers who were caught in rockfalls on Dekalun Trail, Xiaozhuilu Trail, and Shakadang Trail. This also included five members of the same family. Five people died after rockfalls occurred along the Central Cross-Island Highway and the

Suhua Highway The Suhua Highway (), also called the Suao-Hualien Highway, is a section of the Provincial Highway 9 in Taiwan, starting at Su'ao Township, Yilan County and ending at Hualien City, Hualien County. With a portion built alongside very steep c ...

, while two fatalities occurred inside mining areas of Xiulin after rockfalls. A woman in Hualien City died after she returned to her building to retrieve her cat, during which she was pinned down by a column following an aftershock. Five cats trapped in the building, including the deceased woman's cat, were later found alive and were rescued. Taiwan's earthquake alert system did not send an advance alert of the mainshock, unlike in previous instances. Authorities later said that they had initially estimated the earthquake to be of a smaller magnitude ranging between 6.2 and 6.8. The CWA Seismology Center later clarified that it had sent out two alerts that covered the immediate area of the epicenter as well as parts of southern and central Taiwan but not the Taipei area, adding that conditions for issuing a national-level warning depended on the earthquake measuring a magnitude above five and its intensity reaching four on the CWA's seven-level scale. Six hundred people were stranded in Taroko National Park. Twelve park visitors, including two Canadian nationals, were stranded along a trail, while 40 others were injured. Injuries were also reported across Hualien City, Yilan, Taipei,

New Taipei City New Taipei City is a special municipality located in northern Taiwan. The city is home to an estimated population of 3,974,683 as of 2022, making it the most populous city of Taiwan, and also the second largest special municipality by area, be ...

Keelung Keelung () or Jilong () (; Hokkien POJ: '), officially known as Keelung City, is a major port city situated in the northeastern part of Taiwan. The city is a part of the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area, along with its neighbors, New Taipe ...

Taichung Taichung (, Wade–Giles: ''Tʻai²-chung¹'', pinyin: ''Táizhōng''), officially Taichung City, is a special municipality located in central Taiwan. Taichung has approximately 2.8 million residents and is the second most populous city of Taiw ...

and Taoyuan due to falls or toppled objects. Sixty people were trapped inside the Jinwen Tunnel along the Suhua Highway, while 50 employees of the Silk's Place Hotel Taroko who were traveling in four minibuses were also declared trapped after none of them could be contacted by authorities over the phone. The hotel management later said that the employees were safe, citing three staff who had reached the hotel on foot. A rescued employee later said that their convoy had been trapped in a tunnel following a rockfall and that the vehicle she was in was severely damaged by a rock. The road immediately outside the Qingshui Tunnel caved in, trapping several people inside. Seventy people were also trapped in two rock quarries, while nine people were trapped inside a cave. The

Central Emergency Operation Center The Central Emergency Operation Center (EMIC; ) is the emergency operations center of Taiwan which is activated in the event of emergency situation. The center is operated by the National Fire Agency of the Ministry of the Interior. Levels CEOC ...

reported at least 2,498 cases of damage nationwide following the earthquake, with 1,140 instances in Taipei, 497 in New Taipei and 366 in Hualien County. At least 111 structures were destroyed, while 1,939 houses, 870 buildings and 75 roads and tunnels were damaged by the earthquake. Of the 28 reported building collapses, 17 of them occurred in Hualien, while the other 11 occurred in Yilan, New Taipei and Keelung. Collapses trapped at least 20 people in the immediate aftermath. Twelve buildings deemed unsafe were ordered demolished by authorities. In Hualien City, two houses, the nine-story Uranus building and a restaurant collapsed, trapping many people inside. One person was found dead while 22 others were later rescued from the Uranus building, which was built in 1986 prior to the introduction of more stringent building codes in the wake of the 1999 Jiji earthquake and was found to be lacking supporting ground-floor front pillars. Forty-eight residential buildings in the city were damaged, and the National Hualien Girls' Senior High School also sustained heavy damage. At least 200 residents living near the epicenter were displaced. A total of 1,400 households in Hualien County were damaged. In Taipei, 249 people were injured, six of them seriously, and 10 houses were severely damaged. A warehouse collapsed in New Taipei City, causing three minor injuries. Fifty people were subsequently rescued from the building. Tiles were dislodged and fell off older buildings and some newer structures in the capital. The

Legislative Yuan The Legislative Yuan is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of China (Taiwan) located in Taipei. The Legislative Yuan is composed of 113 members, who are directly elected for 4-year terms by people of the Taiwan Area through a parallel v ...

building also sustained damage to its walls and ceilings, while debris fell from the Liberty Square archway of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall.

Subsidence Subsidence is a general term for downward vertical movement of the Earth's surface, which can be caused by both natural processes and human activities. Subsidence involves little or no horizontal movement, which distinguishes it from slope move ...

Xindian District Xindian District () is an inner city district in the southern part of New Taipei City, Taiwan. Name Xindian's name originated during the Qing Dynasty close to 300 years ago. According to legend, a person named Lin and others came from Quanzhou, ...

caused seven houses to collapse, forcing 12 people to evacuate. A viaduct of the New Taipei Circular Line between Banxin and Zhongyuan stations was disaligned, while a train was derailed at

Jingan station Jingan (, formerly transliterated as Ching-An Station until 2003) is a metro station in New Taipei, Taiwan, served by Taipei Metro. The elevated platforms opened on 31 January 2020. Station overview This six-level, underground station has two st ...

, damaging the station platform and track bed. All service on the Taipei Metro was briefly suspended for safety checks. Nevertheless, train service through the epicenter region was restored within 24 hours. A portion of the ceiling in

Taoyuan International Airport Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport is an international airport serving Taipei and northern Taiwan. Located about west of Taipei in Dayuan District, Taoyuan, the airport is Taiwan's largest. It was also the busiest airport in Taiwan before t ...

collapsed. Another 68 people were injured in Yilan City, where walls collapsed and water pipes ruptured. In

Nantou County Nantou County (; Hokkien POJ: ''Lâm-tâu-koān''; Hakka PFS: ''Nàm-thèu-yen'') is the second largest county of Taiwan by area, located in the central part of the country. It is also the only non-coastal county in Taiwan. Its name derives fro ...

, 66 schools and nine houses sustained damage. Power outages affected 371,869 homes in Taiwan according to the Ministry of Economic Affairs, of which, 14,833 were in Taichung; 5,306 were restored within approximately 25 minutes of the earthquake. Electricity was restored in 70 percent of households within two hours of the earthquake by Taipower, leaving around 91,000 homes without power. By the morning of 4 April, the number was reduced to 337. Water shortages affected 125,675 households, while outages of natural gas affecting 394 households and internet disruptions were also reported. Eighty cell phone base stations were damaged. There were reports of damaged walls, debris and toppled bricks across much of the island. High-speed railway services across Taiwan were partially suspended and major expressways in the eastern part of the island were closed. No anomalies were recorded in any of Taiwan's three nuclear plants. A total of 779 landslides were recorded following the earthquake, affecting 433.93 hectares. A massive landslide occurred near Xiulin. The Suhua Highway was closed after sections of it were struck by at least nine rockfalls. Rockfalls occurred on another highway which hit at least 12 cars and injured nine people. A landslide along Provincial Highway 9 between Su'ao and Hualien blocked traffic at

Chongde railway station Chongde () is a railway station on the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) North-link line located in Xiulin Township, Hualien County, Taiwan. History The station was opened on 8 February 1979. On 2 April 2021, at least 50 people died in a ...

, while a rockfall also occurred in the Heren-Chongde section of the

Eastern Trunk line The Eastern Trunk line () is a railway line of the Taiwan Railways Administration running along Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the nor ...

in Hualien. A section of the Central Cross-Island Highway between Dayuling and Taroko was also closed. Two German nationals were reported to have been trapped in a tunnel in Hualien. In Taichung, rockfalls blocked a road, damaging three cars and injuring a driver. A portion of Guishan Island collapsed into the sea. Six

F-16 The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine Multirole combat aircraft, multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it ...

fighter jets of the Republic of China Air Force were slightly damaged at a base in Hualien. At the distillery of the

Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corporation Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corporation (TTL; ), is a state-owned manufacturer and distributor of cigarettes and alcohol, and also formerly (until 2002) a state-sanctioned alcohol beverage brewing and retailing monopoly, in Taiwan. Its most famou ...

in Hualien, around 192,000 alcohol bottles were shattered, causing financial losses of at least NT$14 million (US$435,845). The earthquake also destroyed 1,000 vats of Shaoxing wine in the distillery. The Education Ministry said that 434 schools suffered damage from the earthquake totaling NT$470 million (US$14.66 million), mostly in Hualien and Pingtung Counties and

Hsinchu City Hsinchu (, Chinese: 新竹, Pinyin: ''Xīnzhú'', Wade–Giles: ''Hsin¹-chu²'') is a city located in northwestern Taiwan. It is the most populous city in Taiwan Province not among the special municipalities, with estimated 450,655 inhabi ...

. The Hualien County Tourism Association estimated damage to tourism from the earthquake to reach NT$5.3 billion (US$166 million), with hotel booking rates expected to drop to less than 10%. The

Interior Ministry An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministry ...

said damage to the Taroko National Park reached NT$1 billion (US$30.92 million). The Ministry of Agriculture estimated agricultural damage from the earthquake at NT$80.8 million (US$2.53 million), with Hualien County accounting for NT$79.15 million. Most of the damage in the county came from losses to the fishing industry at NT$40.95 million, while the remaining NT$1.05 million coming from damages to livestock facilities and loss of animal feed in the county. Crop losses reached up to NT$10,000 and affected 0.3 hectares of farmland, primarily those cultivated with wood ear mushrooms. The ministry also said Hualien incurred NT$25.98 million in damage to agricultural infrastructure, with NT$13.98 million coming from fisheries infrastructure, as well as NT$50,000 in livestock losses, mainly to pigs. Damage to public agricultural infrastructure in Hualien was estimated at NT$33.98 million, with NT$20 million coming from soil and water conservation infrastructure. In

, railway services were temporarily suspended in eastern parts of the country. In

, a residential building tilted. Two people were slightly injured by panic due to the tsunami warnings in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

23 April

In Hualien City, two buildings collapsed, namely the Fukai Hotel and the Commander Building, the latter of which sustained damage in the 3 April earthquake and was deemed unsafe. Two houses were also destroyed in

Ji'an Ji'an () is a prefecture-level city situated in the central region of Jiangxi province of the People's Republic of China while bordering Hunan province to the west. It has an area of and as of the 2020 census, had a population of 4,469,176, of ...

. In

Shoufeng Shoufeng Township is a rural Township in Hualien County, Taiwan. The township sits in the north segment of East Rift Valley between Taiwan's Central Range and Coastal Mountain Range near the Pacific Ocean. The Township is best known as home ...

, a two-story house partially collapsed, while 100 houses lost power. As a result, schools and offices throughout Hualien County were closed on 23 April. A section of the Central Cross-Island Highway between Taroko and Tianxiang was closed due to rockslides, while the Silk's Place Hotel Taroko moved its reopening date from 1 May to 30 June due to concerns over damage in the Taroko National Park.

Response

Incumbent

Taiwanese president The president of the Republic of China, now often referred to as the president of Taiwan, is the head of state of the Republic of China (ROC), as well as the commander-in-chief of the Republic of China Armed Forces. The position once had aut ...

Tsai Ing-wen expressed concern about the damage and ordered the

ROC Armed Forces The Republic of China Armed Forces (ROC Armed Forces) are the armed forces of the Taiwan, Republic of China (ROC), Republic of China (1912–1949), once based in mainland China and currently in its Free area of the Republic of China, remainin ...

to support the local government in Hualien and others parts of the island in rescue missions.

Vice-president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

and president-elect

Lai Ching-te William Lai Ching-te (; born 6 October 1959) is a Taiwanese politician who has been the Vice President of the Republic of China, Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) since 2020. He served as a legislator in the Legislative Yuan from 19 ...

called on the public to be careful and stay calm and announced the formation of an emergency centre to deal with the disaster. In the afternoon of 3 April, Lai visited Hualien County to inspect rescue and relief efforts, while

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

Chen Chien-jen Chen Chien-jen (, born 6 June 1951) is a Taiwanese epidemiologist who served as the Vice President of the Republic of China (Taiwan) from 2016 to 2020. He joined the Chen Shui-bian presidential administration in 2003 as leader of the Departmen ...

visited temporary shelters for displaced residents in Hualien on 4 April. Chen also announced that the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics would allocate NT$300 million (US$9,366,144) in disaster relief to the Hualien County government and would exempt from taxation income received by affected residents taking up temporary employment because of the earthquake. Tsai, Lai, Chen and Vice Premier Cheng Wen-tsan also pledged to donate a month's worth of their salaries for disaster relief. Tsai also warned citizens against non-essential travel to mountains for the long weekend brought about by the

Qingming Festival The Qingming festival or Ching Ming Festival, also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day in English (sometimes also called Chinese Memorial Day or Ancestors' Day), is a traditional Chinese festival observed by the Han Chinese of mainland China, Hong Ko ...

, which began a day after the earthquake. On 10 April, Tsai visited affected areas of Hualien County and Taroko National Park, where she met with rescue workers. The

Executive Yuan The Executive Yuan () is the executive branch of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Its leader is the Premier, who is appointed by the President of the Republic of China, and requires confirmation by the Legislative Yuan. ...

subsequently allotted more than NT$28.55 billion (US$878.15 million) in disaster relief and recovery efforts. Hualien County magistrate

Hsu Chen-wei Hsu Chen-wei (; born 12 October 1968) is a Taiwanese politician. She is the incumbent Magistrate of Hualien County since 25 December 2018. Political careers Publicly known as the wife of former Hualien County Magistrate Fu Kun-chi, Hsu was app ...

said all residents and businesses in buildings that were in a dangerous state had been evacuated. Low-orbit satellites were used to facilitate communications in their first deployment for a disaster in Taiwan. Helicopters were deployed by the

National Airborne Service Corps The National Airborne Service Corps (NASC; ) is the sole agency of the Republic of China (Taiwan) that operates aircraft and helicopters besides military and paramilitary units. The agency is responsible for executing and providing aerial supp ...

to rescue at least 82 stranded individuals, including trapped miners and drop food to stranded individuals pending rescue. Emergency workers propped up the Uranus building with gravel and rocks to prevent it from completely falling over in an aftershock. Demolition works on the building began on 5 April and finished on 17 April. The

Health Ministry A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entity, Subnational entities, such as State (administrative division), states, county, counties an ...

placed medical staff in Yilan and Taitung on stand-by to help victims in Hualien. The mayor of

Kaohsiung Kaohsiung City (Mandarin Chinese: ; Wade–Giles: ''Kao¹-hsiung²;'' Pinyin: ''Gāoxióng'') is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsi ...

, Chen Chi-mai, also ordered the deployment of a rescue team and dogs to Taroko National Park. The Ministry of Transportation and Communications initiated maritime ferry services between Su'ao Port in Yilan County and the

Port of Hualien The Port of Hualien () is an international port on the Pacific Ocean in Hualien City, Hualien County, Taiwan. Its artificial harbor protected by breakwaters was built in 1930–1939. There are 25 wharves in Hualien Port. The annual container volu ...

beginning on 4 April, while Mandarin Airlines and UNI Air added seven extra flights between Hualien Airport and the rest of Taiwan. Railway services between Hualien and Yilan Counties reopened on 4 April following repairs and clearing operations by the Taiwan Railway Corporation. The New Taipei City Government opened 15 shelters for 269 displaced residents and offered free bus rides to alleviate complications on transportation brought by the earthquake, particularly on the railway system. Partial operations at the New Taipei Circular Line resumed on the afternoon of 3 April, with other sections reopening on 7 April, leaving only a portion of the line between

Banqiao Banqiao () may refer to: Taiwan *Banqiao District, seat of New Taipei Mainland China *Banqiao Dam (), dam on the Ru River near Zhumadian, Henan that suffered an infamous failure in 1975 *Banqiao Town (disambiguation) *Banqiao Township (disambigua ...

and Zhonghe stations still under repair. Several semiconductor firms, including

Powerchip Powerchip Technology Corporation () manufactures and sells semiconductor products, in particular memory chips and other integrated circuits. As of 2020, the company was the 7th largest semiconductor foundry in the world with three 12 inch a ...

, InnoLux, UMC, , Taimide Tech, and

TSMC Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (TSMC; also called Taiwan Semiconductor) is a Taiwanese multinational corporation, multinational semiconductor contract manufacturing and design company. It is the world's most valuable semicon ...

temporarily suspended operations and evacuated their facilities in Hsinchu. TSMC said it expected losses of about $60 million from the earthquake and reported minimal damage to some of its facilities and equipment, adding that more than 70 percent of its chip manufacturing equipment had resumed production later on 3 April. Other manufacturers resumed operations on 4 April. The

Taiwan Stock Exchange The Taiwan Stock Exchange Corporation (TWSE; ) is a financial institution, located in Taipei 101, in Taipei, Taiwan. The TWSE was established in 1961 and began operating as a stock exchange on 9 February 1962. It is regulated by the Financial S ...

continued regular operations on 3 April despite the earthquake. The Health Ministry and the Hualien County government set up dedicated bank accounts and online platforms for receiving earthquake-related donations. The

Finance Ministry A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

also said that 12 government-owned businesses would donate a total of NT$21 million. The Health Ministry said it had received at least NT$720 million (US$22.35 million) in donations by 11 April. and released NT$490 million in aid. The Taiwan Foundation for Disaster Relief announced that it had received about NT$1.4 billion (US$42.92 million) in donations by 28 April. The Ministry of Economic Affairs said that it was planning to provide loans totaling NT$20 billion to support affected businesses, and introduced vouchers and subsidies to support the tourism industry in Hualien and Taitung Counties. Several prominent Taiwanese firms announced donations towards disaster relief. Foxconn pledged NT$80 million while its founder, Terry Gou personally pledged NT$60 million.

Taishin Financial Holdings Taishin Financial is a financial services company headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan. Taishin Financial Holdings consists of subsidiaries in the sectors of banking, securities, bills finance, assets management, and venture capital. The company's ...

pledged NT$10 million while

Acer Inc. Acer Inc. ( ) is a Taiwanese multinational hardware and electronics corporation specializing in advanced electronics technology, headquartered in Xizhi, New Taipei City. Its products include desktop PCs, laptop PCs ( clamshells, 2-in-1s, co ...

pledged NT$6 million.

Quanta Computer Quanta Computer Incorporated () () is a Taiwan-based manufacturer of notebook computers and other electronic hardware. Its customers include Apple Inc., Dell, Hewlett-Packard Inc., Acer Inc., Alienware, Amazon.com, Cisco, Fujitsu, Gericom, Lenov ...

and

Fubon Financial Holding Co. Fubon Financial Holding Co., Ltd. () ( ) is a financial investment holding company consists of the following key subsidiaries: Fubon Asset Management, Fubon Insurance Co. Ltd., Fubon Securities, Fubon Bank (present Taipei Fubon Bank), Fubon Lif ...

respectively pledged donations of NT$50 million for earthquake relief, while Wanin International Co., Tung Ho Steel Enterprise Corp., and

Yageo Yageo Corporation(國巨公司) is an American Taiwan-based electronic component manufacturing company, founded in 1977. The company specializes in passive devices — resistors, capacitors and inductors. As of January 2020 they we ...

pledged a combined total of NT$36 million. The Red Cross Society of the Republic of China and the Tzu Chi foundation provided meals and shelters to displaced residents.

Taipei 101 Taipei 101 (; stylized as TAIPEI 101), formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center, is a supertall skyscraper in Taipei, Taiwan. This building was officially classified as the world's tallest from its opening in 2004 until the 2009 ...

was lit up on the night of 3 April in memory of the victims of the earthquake. Following criticism over alleged lapses in issuing warnings over the earthquake, the CWA said that it would issue a national-level warning for future incidents and adjust conditions for issuing alerts to accommodate a flexible margin of error, rather than just taking a single value into account to ensure enough time for preparations by the public.

Impact on local economy

Tourist arrivals to Hualien fell by about 200,000 in the month following the earthquake. Taiwan's tourism administration began offering subsidies for tourists travelling to the area after the earthquake, which were extended after they were initially rolled out.

International reactions

Countries

The

Taiwan Affairs Office The Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council is an administrative agency under the State Council of Mainland China. It is responsible for setting and implementing guidelines and policies related to the Republic of China (Taiwan), as stipulate ...

of the People's Republic of China (PRC) said it was highly concerned with the earthquake and was willing to provide disaster relief assistance. In response, Taiwan's

Mainland Affairs Council The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) is a cabinet-level administrative agency under the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China in Taiwan. The MAC is responsible for the planning, development, and implementation of the cross-strait relations po ...

expressed thanks for its concern but said that there would be no request for assistance from Taiwan. Lai Ching-te, however, wrote to Japanese prime minister

Fumio Kishida is a Japanese politician serving as Prime Minister of Japan and president of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) since 2021. A member of the House of Representatives, he previously served as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2012 to 2017 and ...

on X, "Let us continue to help each other and join hands to overcome these difficult times". This is the second instance of Taipei rebuffing China's aid; after the

2018 Hualien earthquake At 23:50 (UTC+8) on 6 February 2018, an earthquake of magnitude 6.4 on the moment magnitude scale hit Taiwan. The epicenter was on the coastline near Hualien, which was the most severely affected area, with a maximum felt intensity of VIII (''S ...

, it turned down a $3 million donation from the PRC as well as its offer of

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

workers, but later accepted assistance from other countries. On 4 April, the Taiwanese foreign ministry condemned the PRC for its "shameless use of the Taiwan earthquake to conduct

cognitive operations Mental operations are operations that affect mental contents. Initially, operations of reasoning have been the object of logic alone. Pierre Janet was one of the first to use the concept in psychology. Mental operations have been investigated at ...

internationally" after

Geng Shuang Geng Shuang (; born April 1973) is a Chinese politician serving as China's Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations. He formerly served as the deputy director of the Foreign Ministry Information Department of the People's Republic o ...

, China's deputy ambassador to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

, said China is "ready to provide disaster relief" and thanked "the international community for their care and good wishes" at a UN meeting. The ministry also criticized Bolivia for expressing solidarity with China over the earthquake. Japan deployed military aircraft to observe possible damage in Okinawa Prefecture following the tsunami alert. The Japanese government later announced that no damage had occurred. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida expressed condolences and sympathy with Taiwan and offered the government's support, with Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa announcing a donation of $1 million that was turned over on 10 April. South Korea also pledged US$500,000 in aid, while Thailand provided a NT$1 million (US$31,018) donation. Lithuania pledged 50,000 euros (US$53,205) for reconstruction efforts in Hualien County, while the Czech Republic pledged US$150,000 for relief efforts. The United States said that it was "ready to provide any necessary assistance". At least 47 countries, including those with no official diplomatic relations with Taiwan, as well as the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

, expressed sympathies and offered support to Taiwan. On 6 April, Taiwan announced that it had accepted an offer from Turkey to send a team of seven rescue specialists carrying drones who were expected to arrive later in the day, adding that it was the only foreign rescue team that it had allowed to enter in reciprocation for the aid given by Taiwanese rescue workers in the

2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

. On 7 April, the

Manila Economic and Cultural Office The Manila Economic and Cultural OfficeIn .In tl, Tanggapang Pang-ekonomiya at Pangkultura ng Maynila. Also known as the Philippine Representative Office in Taiwan(; tl, link=no, Tanggapan ng Kinatawan ng Pilipinas sa Taiwan). is the representa ...

(MECO), the de facto embassy of the Philippines in Taiwan, distributed humanitarian aid to

Overseas Filipino Workers Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) is a term often used to refer to Filipino migrant workers, people with Filipino citizenship who reside in another country for a limited period of employment. The number of these workers was roughly 1.77 million be ...

in Hualien.

Private entities

Multinational firms such as Japan's

Kura Sushi is a Japanese sushi restaurant chain. Its headquarters are in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture. It has 451 locations in Japan, 22 in Taiwan, and 30 in the United States. While it is a conveyor belt sushi chain, it relies on a high level of automation al ...

and South Korea's

Coupang Coupang ( ko, 쿠팡) is a South Korean e-commerce company based in Seoul, South Korea, and incorporated in Delaware, United States. Founded in 2010 by Bom Kim, the company expanded to become the largest online marketplace in South Korea. It ...

pledged NTS$2 million each for disaster relief, while FamilyMart and

7-Eleven 7-Eleven, Inc., stylized as 7-ELEVE, is a multinational chain of retail convenience stores, headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The chain was founded in 1927 as an ice house storefront in Dallas. It was named Tote'm Stores between 1928 and 1946. A ...

opened donation channels in their respective mobile applications. Cathay Financial Holdings pledged NT$30 million, while Shin Kong Financial Holdings pledged NT$10 million, with NT$6 million specifically earmarked to the Hualien County government. Other Japanese companies such as

LY Corporation , trading as LYC, is a Japanese internet company owned by A Holdings, a joint venture between SoftBank Group of Japan, and Naver Corporation of South Korea, founded in 2023 by the merger of Z Holdings, and four subsidiaries including Line Corp ...

Rakuten () is a Japanese technology conglomerate based in Tokyo, founded by Hiroshi Mikitani in 1997. Centered around Rakuten Ichiba, its businesses include financial services utilizing financial technology, as well as digital content and communicati ...

, and

Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...

raised a combined total of more than 258 million yen in donations. The Red Cross Society of the Republic of China received a 10 million yen (US$65,903) donation from Japanese musician

Yoshiki Yoshiki is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yoshiki can be written using many different combinations of kanji characters. Here are some examples: *義樹, "justice, tree" *義基, "justice, foundation" *義機, "justice, opportu ...

. The

Yomiuri Giants The are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Bunkyo, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams based in Tokyo, the other being the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. They ...

, who play in the

Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...

pledged 10 million yen (US$66,112) and set up a three-day fundraiser starting on 5 April, citing their exhibition games in Taiwan in March 2024 as a reason.

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hualien earthquake, 2024 2024 earthquakes 2024 tsunamis 2024 disasters in Taiwan April 2024 events in Taiwan Earthquakes in Taiwan Tsunamis in Taiwan Earthqauke 2024 earthquake