Major earthquake in Taiwan (and a 4.8 temblor in New Jersey)

[Sylvia]

Associated Press article and video (April 3, 2024):

Fierce earthquake rattles Taiwan, killing 9 and injuring more than 1,000

The quake, which also injured more than 1,000, was centered off the coast of rural, mountainous Hualien County.

apnews.com

The strongest earthquake in a quarter-century rocked Taiwan Wednesday morning, killing nine people, stranding dozens at quarries and a national park, and sending some residents scrambling out the windows of damaged buildings.
The quake, which injured more than 1,000, struck just before 8 a.m. and was centered off the coast of rural, mountainous Hualien County, where some buildings leaned at severe angles, their ground floors crushed. Just over 150 kilometers (93 miles) away in the capital of Taipei, tiles fell from older buildings, and schools evacuated students to sports fields as aftershocks followed.
Rescuers fanned out in Hualien, looking for people who may be trapped and using excavators to stabilize damaged buildings. The numbers of people missing, trapped or stranded fluctuated as authorities learned of more in trouble and worked to locate or free them.

Taiwan emerges remarkably unscathed after massive [7.4 magnitude] earthquake: https://www.npr.org/2024/04/04/1242...remarkably-unscathed-after-massive-earthquake

"The road below my feet suddenly turned into what felt like waves on water," said Vincent Tseng, a Hualien resident.
Yet, the day after what was the worst quake to hit the Asian island in a quarter century, most residents cannot stop talking about how much worse it could have been.
As of Thursday local time, authorities say nine people were killed during the quake and just over 1,000 people were injured. Train service through the epicenter was restored within 24 hours.
"It is quite remarkable that given an earthquake of this magnitude, we have seen so few reported causalities," says Daniel Aldrich, a political science professor at Northeastern University who studies earthquake resilience around the world. "India and Haiti faced less powerful earthquakes but had far more casualties and Taiwan has managed to have so few."

And today, felt along the East coast: https://weather.com/news/news/2024-04-05-earthquake-new-york-new-jersey-northeast

An earthquake that may have been felt by up to 42 million people rattled New York, Philadelphia and other Northeast cities at around 10:25 a.m. EDT this morning.
Shaking was reported across the Northeast, including in Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire and Maine.
There are no reports of major damage or injuries.

Friday's earthquake was the strongest in NJ since 1783. A look back at quake history

Friday's earthquake was the strongest to hit New Jersey since 1783.

www.northjersey.com

The April 5, 2024 earthquake was a once-in-a-lifetime event.
The magnitude 4.8 earthquake near Tewksbury was the most significant to impact North Jersey since 1884, when an Aug. 10 earthquake somewhere near Jamaica Bay toppled chimneys and moved houses off their foundations as far as Rahway.
Other than that quake, there were only three earthquakes in modern history that caused damage in the state: 1737 (New York City), 1783 (west of New York City) and 1927 (New Jersey coast near Asbury), according to New Jersey Office of Emergency Management records. However, as with Friday's quake, objects falling from shelves and building damage such as chimney collapse were thought to be the extent of the impact. New Jersey has yet to record a fatality due to an earthquake, according to state records.

AP's live updates (ETA - until just before 4 pm ET):

Earthquake shakes New York, New Jersey, Philly: Live updates

An earthquake shook parts of the East Coast with a preliminary magnitude of 4.8. FDNY says there were no initial reports of damage.

apnews.com

 

[VALuvsMKwan]

My college roommate living on Long Island just felt another quake/tremor within the last 10 minutes.

ETA: per the New York Times, apparently an aftershock.

 

[allezfred]

Just saw footage of the New Jersey earthquake and I thought it was going to be a bigger tremor based on the news coverage. When I lived in Japan, I would have barely registered something of that size.

 

[skatingguy]

Just saw footage of the New Jersey earthquake and I thought it was going to be a bigger tremor based on the news coverage. When I lived in Japan, I would have barely registered something of that size.

Once you get used to 7.0+ anything less just doesn't feel the same.

 

[Sylvia]

Latest from the Taipei Times:

Quake death toll rises to 13, as people airlifted - Taipei Times

Bringing Taiwan to the World and the World to Taiwan

www.taipeitimes.com

As of 2:30pm yesterday, 13 people had died and 1,145 were injured in the earthquake, while 405 were trapped or stranded and six were missing, data released by the center showed.
As of 10am — 74 hours after the temblor, which measured 7.2 on the Richter scale and magnitude 7.4 on the moment magnitude scale — the Central Weather Administration had recorded 603 aftershocks, including 23 that were magnitude 5 or greater.
The aftershocks have loosened earth, causing rocks to continue falling intermittently.
Demolition of a building in Hualien City that was leaning precariously after the quake was also halted, because of aftershocks that caused it to lean further.

Meanwhile, National Airborne Service Corps helicopters flew to areas that had been cut off near Taroko National Park to airlift stranded people.
“Priority was given to the elderly, the weak, women, children and people with chronic diseases,” news Web site ET Today reported. “Although everyone was tired after coming down the mountain, they were all still smiling.”
One airlift brought people from the luxury Silks Place Taroko (太魯閣晶英酒店) hotel, where more than 400 tourists and staff had been stranded.
Rescuers also airdropped boxes of food and supplies to a group of students, teachers and residents at an inaccessible elementary school.
Elsewhere, engineers were working around the clock to clear massive boulders from roads and tunnel entrances.
Minister of the Interior Lin Yu-chang (林右昌) said that Taiwan would bolster its rescue operations by working with a team of experts from Turkey.

BBC:

Taiwan earthquake: How the island's two-decade preparation saved it

A quarter of a century ago, an earthquake killed 2,400. This week, barely a building fell down - why?

www.bbc.com