Taiwan suffers strongest earthquake in 25 years
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The news: Nine people have died and 50 remain missing after Taiwan suffered its strongest earthquake in at least 25 years.
The numbers: The quake struck at around 8:00am local time (11:00am AEDT) on Wednesday, with a depth of around 35km. The US Geological Survey rated it as a 7.5 magnitude quake. Over 900 people have been injured.
The context: The earthquake’s epicentre hit offshore from the country’s mountainous eastern region of Hualien, and several buildings in the region were severely damaged. Tsunami warnings were initially sent out following the earthquake, however all alerts in the region had been lifted by Wednesday afternoon.
Major semiconductor manufacturer, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) has halted some of its chipmaking and evacuated plants after the earthquake. TSMC is the main contract chipmaker for Apple and Nvidia, raising concerns that a production delay could disrupt the global tech supply chain.
Three hikers were killed in rockslides in a Hualien national park, and a van driver was also killed in the same area when boulders hit his vehicle. Authorities say they have lost contact with 50 people in minibuses within the national park, and 70 miners are believed to be trapped in two coal mines.
The source: Bloomberg
