Death Toll from Taiwan Earthquake Rises to 13... 6 Missing and 442 Isolated

The death toll from the strong earthquake in Taiwan on the 3rd (local time) has risen to 13. Although the rescue operation's "golden time" (within 72 hours after the event) has passed, a significant number of people are still unaccounted for.

As of the 6th, the Taiwan Central Disaster Response Center reported that 6 people are missing and 442 are trapped and awaiting rescue, according to Taiwan Liberty Times. The death toll stands at 13, with 1,145 injured as of the 6th.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The rescue team believes that 3 of the missing are under rock piles within the famous tourist site Taroko National Park near the epicenter. Recently, 3 deceased were found in this area.

Most of those trapped are also confined within Taroko National Park. The park contains 27 of Taiwan's 100 peaks, with the highest peak reaching an elevation of 3,742 meters. The rugged terrain makes rescue efforts difficult.

Continuous aftershocks are slowing down the rescue operations. According to the Taiwan Central Weather Bureau, there have been a total of 635 aftershocks by 5 p.m. that day, with 143 of them being strongly felt. According to the AP News Agency, search and rescue operations were canceled on the afternoon of the 5th due to aftershocks.

On the morning of the 3rd at 7:58 a.m., a magnitude 7.2 earthquake occurred (the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre and the U.S. Geological Survey reported it as magnitude 7.4). Taiwanese authorities explained that this earthquake is the largest since the September 21, 1999 earthquake (magnitude 7.6), which claimed about 2,400 lives.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.