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Taiwan
ChinaScience

1 dead after earthquake hits southeast Taiwan, rattling bridges and buildings

  • Cement factory worker is crushed by falling debris and several people have to be freed from a convenience store in Hualien county
  • The 6.8 quake could be felt across the island

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Emergency workers attend the scene of a collapsed building in Yuli township, Hualien county, after an earthquake on Sunday. Photo: AP
Lawrence Chung
One person died and 79 were injured on Sunday when a powerful earthquake hit southeastern Taiwan.

The Central Emergency Operation Centre said a worker at a cement factory in Yuli, Hualien county, was crushed by falling objects and was later pronounced dead at hospital.

The 6.8-magnitude quake struck the neighbouring county of Taitung at 2.44pm, just a day after a 6.4-magnitude quake hit the area, according to the island’s Central Weather Bureau.

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The epicentre from Sunday’s quake was tracked to Chishang township at a depth of just 7km (4.3 miles), bureau officials said. The one on Saturday was in nearby Guanshan.

The emergency centre said five people were trapped in a convenience store on the ground floor of a three-storey building that collapsed in Hualien.

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