Strong and Shallow M6.0 Earthquake Kills 1 in Taiwan

An elderly woman in New Taipei apparently died after a magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck northeastern Taiwan at 5:28 a.m. Thursday, local time.

The earthquake, with an epicenter situated 36.5 kilometers southeast of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 22.5 km, disrupted the train traffic stranding 2,500 passengers.                                                                                                 Shortly after the temblor, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) activated the emergency response mechanism.


After receiving briefings from the National Security Council, Tsai posted a message on her Facebook and other social media platforms reassuring the public that no major damage or casualties had been reported as a result of the earthquake.


However, a 60 year-old-woman in New Taipei was apparently crushed by a closet that toppled over during the quake and later declared dead by hospital authorities.