Death toll rises to seven after major earthquake in Taiwan

The intensity map of the Central Weather Administration (CWA) of Taiwan is displayed on a smartphone, after a 7.2-magnitude earthquake shook Taiwan on Wednesday. Andre M. Chang/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

The death toll has risen to seven after a severe earthquake off the coast of Taiwan, the Central Emergency Operation Centre (CEOC) said on Wednesday.

The 7.2-magnitude earthquake centred about 25 kilometres south-east of Hualien in eastern Taiwan triggered several landslides in the rugged east coast region of the island.

According to the CEOC, the seven victims were killed in a tunnel on the Dekalun Trail in a mining area in Hualien County.

There were 736 people injured, and 77 people remain trapped in tunnels, the CEOC said.

In the Chongde Tunnel in Taroko National Park, a group of people including two Germans, was trapped inside. In addition, about 60 people were trapped in Jinwen Tunnel on the highway that connects the eastern cities of Suao and Hualien.

© Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH