A massive magnitude 7.5 earthquake has struck Taiwan, sparking fears of three-meter-high tsunami waves hitting Japan’s southern islands.
The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) has issued a tsunami alert for the country’s southern islands in the Far East after the quake, which struck shortly before 9am Japanese local time (1200 GMT).
A message from the JMA’s disaster preparedness account on X, formerly Twitter, has warned those in the affected areas not to leave designated safe zones until the all clear.
A translation of the tweet read: ‘A tsunami warning has been issued as of 09:01 on the 3rd. Tsunamis strike repeatedly. Do not leave your safe area until the warning has been lifted.”
The JMA says the island groups of Okinawa, Miyajokima and Yaeyama are at risk of tsunamis up to three meters high.
Multiple videos have been shared of the damage to Hualien, a city on Taiwan’s east coast close to the earthquake’s epicenter.
Another webcam video in Taiwan’s capital Taipei showed the camera shaking due to the convulsions.
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A map released by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) shows the epicenter of the earthquake off the coast of Taiwan (the ‘x’ symbol) and the islands most likely to be affected highlighted in red