Strong earthquake hits Taiwan killing nine and injuring nearly 730 

TOKYO: Nine people were killed in the powerful earthquake that hit Taiwan. A magnitude of 7.4 was registered in the Richter Scale. Nearly 730 people were injured. As part of this, a tsunami occurred in Japan's Yonaguni Island. A 7.2 magnitude struck in September 1999 killed more than 2500 people and injured more than 1300 people.

The quake struck 18 km south-west of Hualien at 7.58 am today. It spread over 11.8 km. Taiwan's Central Weather Administration said aftershocks are expected over the next four days, with a magnitude of 6.5 to 7.0.

Taiwan government said four people were killed in the epicenter of the earthquake in Hualien County. As part of the earthquake, 26 buildings were destroyed. Half of these are in the county. Rescue operations are in progress to rescue around 20 people trapped between the collapsed buildings.

One floor of a five-storied building collapsed in Hualien. Now the building is leaning at 45 degrees. The footages of it are being circulated on social media. Meantime, train services across Taiwan were also suspended as part of the quake. There have been reports of tiles falling from buildings in the capital, Taipei.

The walls and roof of the National Legislative Assembly, built before World War II, were also reportedly damaged. More than 91,000 homes lost power, according to Taiwan's Central Emergency Command Center. The earthquake also caused landslides. Its footage is also circulating on social media.

The tsunami hit Yonaguni Island about 15 minutes after the earthquake. According to reports, this is the first tsunami to hit Okinawa in 26 years. As part of this, all flights to Japan have been temporarily suspended.