A strong earthquake stuck Nantou County in Taiwan, at 10:03 am (Beijing time) on Wednesday, killing at least one person and injuring several others.
According to China Earthquake Networks Center, an earthquake of magnitude 6.5 rocked the island, but the local meteorological authority in Taiwan had put the quake at 6.1. The US Geological Survey placed the quake's magnitude at 6.0.
The earthquake was reportedly felt across the island and as far as the Penghu Islands.
A 72-year-old woman became the victim of the quake when a temple wall collapsed and crushed her to death in the rural county of Nantou. At least 19 people were injured by falling ceilings and other objects. Some of the school buildings were damaged, but they remained intact.
A section of Taiwan's rail networks were suspended after the quake for safety checks. No damage was found on the rail networks in the quake-affected area. Metro trains were slowed down in Taipei as a result of the tremor felt in the area, but services resumed 10 minutes later, reported Xinhua News Agency.
Kuo Kai-wen, director of the local earthquake monitoring centre, said that an average of 2.7 quakes measuring a magnitude of six or more strike the island every year. He said that Wednesday's quake appeared to be an aftershock, following a massive 7.6 magnitude earthquake that rocked the island on 21 September 1999, killing more than 2,500 people and injuring at least 8,000, reported Xinhua.
