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Photos: See the aftermath of the Taiwan earthquake

NPR | By NPR Staff
Published April 3, 2024 at 10:22 AM EDT
Hualien, Taiwan: A red building is partially collapsed after a powerful 7.3-magnitude earthquake rocked the entire island on April 3, 2024.
VCG via Getty Images
Hualien, Taiwan: A red building is partially collapsed after a powerful 7.3-magnitude earthquake rocked the entire island on April 3, 2024.

Taiwan has been hit by the strongest earthquake in a quarter of a century.

In Taiwan, at least 9 people are dead and hundreds are injured after a strong magnitude 7.4 earthquake hit the east coast during morning rush hour. More than 100 strong aftershocks have occurred.

Officials say dozens were trapped and many buildings were damaged especially in the city of Hualien where a 10-story building partially collapsed and leaning.

Earthquakes are common in the area. Taiwan is in the so called ring of fire of seismic activity.

Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

New Taipei City: A vehicle in a collapsed road following an earthquake
An Rong Xu / Bloomberg/Getty Images
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Bloomberg/Getty Images
New Taipei City: A vehicle in a collapsed road following an earthquake
Hualien: Kaohsiung Fire Department staff search inside a building for rescue operation.
Kaohsiung Fire Department / Anadolu/Getty Images
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Anadolu/Getty Images
Hualien: Kaohsiung Fire Department staff search inside a building for rescue operation.
Hualien: Rocks blocked the road after a magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck off Taiwan's eastern coast.
Taichung City Fire Department / Anadolu/Getty Images
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Anadolu/Getty Images
Hualien: Rocks blocked the road after a magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck off Taiwan's eastern coast.
Hualien: 6th Mixed Wing of the Air Force, and the 10th Airlift Group dispatch three batches and three sorties of C-130 aircraft to carry out disaster relief operations and carry rescuers as members of a search and rescue team prepare after a strong earthquake.
Taiwan Ministry of National Defense / Anadolu/Getty Images
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Anadolu/Getty Images
Hualien: 6th Mixed Wing of the Air Force, and the 10th Airlift Group dispatch three batches and three sorties of C-130 aircraft to carry out disaster relief operations and carry rescuers as members of a search and rescue team prepare after a strong earthquake.
New Taipei City: An elevated track for the New Taipei Metro is damaged.
Yang Chengchen / China News Service/Getty Images
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China News Service/Getty Images
New Taipei City: An elevated track for the New Taipei Metro is damaged.
Hualien: Rocks fell and blocked the road after a magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck off Taiwan's eastern coast. The Guguan Works Section sent out machines and tools to open the area, and called on people who wanted to enter the mountainous area to pay attention to the road conditions.
Fengbin Township Office / Anadolu/Getty Images
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Anadolu/Getty Images
Hualien: Rocks fell and blocked the road after a magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck off Taiwan's eastern coast. The Guguan Works Section sent out machines and tools to open the area, and called on people who wanted to enter the mountainous area to pay attention to the road conditions.
Hualien: Rescue workers searching for survivors at the damaged Uranus Building in Hualien, after a major earthquake hit Taiwan's east.
/ AFPTV/AFP/ Getty Images
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AFPTV/AFP/ Getty Images
Hualien: Rescue workers searching for survivors at the damaged Uranus Building in Hualien, after a major earthquake hit Taiwan's east.
People evacuated from their homes sit outside the shelter after the main earthquake in Hualien City, eastern Taiwan.
ChiangYing-ying / AP
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AP
People evacuated from their homes sit outside the shelter after the main earthquake in Hualien City, eastern Taiwan.
Soldiers stand near the site where a building collapsed, following an earthquake, in Hualien, Taiwan April 3, 2024.
WALID BERRAZEG / REUTERS
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REUTERS
Soldiers stand near the site where a building collapsed, following an earthquake, in Hualien, Taiwan April 3, 2024.
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