Dozens of earthquakes hit Taiwan, intensity reaching 6.3

Dozens of aftershocks struck Taiwan's quake-hit eastern county of Hualien late Monday night and Tuesday morning, but only minor damage and no casualties were reported, and major chip maker TSMC said it saw no impact on operations. Hualien, a largely rural and sparsely populated city, was hit by a magnitude 7.2 earthquake on April 3, killing at least 14 people, and the region has been hit by more than 1,000 earthquakes since then.

Buildings shook throughout the night across large parts of northern, eastern and western Taiwan, including the capital Taipei, with the largest quake measuring 6.3. Taiwan's Central Meteorological Administration said the series of earthquakes that began Monday afternoon - rated at around 180 in magnitude - were aftershocks of the larger April 3 earthquake.

Wu Chien-fu, director of the seismological center, told reporters that the tremors were a "concentrated release of energy" and that more could be expected but might not be of great intensity. He further said that there are chances of heavy rain in Taiwan this week and in such a situation, the people of Hualien need to be prepared.

The Hualien Fire Department said two buildings, already uninhabitable after being damaged on April 3, suffered further damage and were leaning. However, no one got harmed in this.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), the world's largest contract chip maker, which has factories on the island's west coast, said some workers at a small number of factories had been evacuated, but facility and security systems were operating normally. and all the employees are safe. In its email it said, "At this time we do not see any impact on operations."

In mountainous Hualien County, some road closures were reported after rockfall, and the government suspended work and school for the day. Taiwan is located near the junction of two tectonic plates and is prone to earthquakes.