Terrified American woman, 25, clutches daughter close as 7.5 magnitude earthquake rocks Taiwan on her fourth day in the country

A 25-year-old travel blogger held on to her daughter for dear life when the magnitude 7.5 earthquake shook Taiwan – and it was only her fourth day in the country.

TikTok user Sakura Siegel, who goes by the username @lostamulet, captured the moment the earthquake struck the building she and her daughter were staying in during their trip.

Sakura told DailyMail.com that she and her husband, who is originally from Taiwan, planned to spend two weeks with his family at their home.

“So I’ve been through earthquakes before. Smaller ones, smaller ones when I lived in Japan,” she said, “I thought it might just be one of the little earthquakes.” So I picked up my phone and started recording.”

As the tremors intensified, she screamed for her daughter to come to her, picked her up and held her as the house shook.

She filmed the aftershock effects that were visible throughout the house

The 7.5 magnitude earthquake in Taiwan struck just before 8 a.m. local time, causing a wave of mass destruction across the country

She turned the camera to the closet in front of her, showing the clothes swinging back and forth on their hangers.

As the earthquake began to subside, she filmed the effects of the aftershock visible throughout the house, such as the chandeliers swaying back and forth.

Siegel said she and her family plan to stay for the duration of their trip because they are far away from the epicenter of the earthquakes.

‘Earthquakes occur spontaneously. It could happen at any moment. You just have to be prepared when it happens.”

The magnitude 7.5 earthquake in Taiwan, which struck just before 8 a.m. local time, caused damage to dozens of buildings and triggered tsunami warnings that reached Japan and the Philippines.

The natural disaster has left at least nine dead and more than 900 injured.

Rescuers expect the total number of injuries and deaths to rise as the hunt for people trapped by the earthquake continues.

All deaths occurred in Hualien Province,

Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration (CWA) said aftershocks between magnitude 6.5 and 7 could occur in the coming days.

The last earthquake of comparable magnitude struck Taiwan in September 1999, killing about 2,400 people in the deadliest natural disaster in the island’s history.

Taiwan’s National Fire Brigade says 70 miners are trapped in two different coal mines in Hualien County.

Sixty-four people were trapped in one coal mine and six people were trapped in another mine, the agency said.

And the destruction doesn’t stop there. Nearly 200 telecom base stations hit by earthquake as authorities lose contact with 50 trapped people trapped in four minibuses.

The earthquake struck shortly before 9am Japan time (12pm GMT, 1am UK time) on the eastern edge of Taiwan, south of the coastal city of Hualien.

The magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck just before 8 a.m. local time (0000 GMT), with the United States Geological Survey (USGS) placing the epicenter 18 kilometers (11 miles) south of the Taiwanese city of Hualien, on a depth of 34.8 kilometers.

This photo taken by Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA) on April 3, 2024 shows a damaged building in Hualien after a major earthquake struck eastern Taiwan

This photo taken by Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA) on April 3, 2024 shows people looking at a damaged building in Hualien

This photo taken by Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA) on April 3, 2024 shows rescuers searching for survivors trapped in a damaged building in New Taipei City

Firefighters work at the site of a building collapse after the earthquake in Hualien, Taiwan

This photo taken by Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA) on April 3, 2024 shows emergency workers tending to a survivor trapped in a damaged building in New Taipei City

Another video shared on social media shows commuters being jostled on trains and on bridges amid the tremors

Rescue workers are still figuring out how to save people trapped in leaning buildings.

“Every time our team moves, the building becomes unstable and they have to find something to hold on to to ensure their safety before pulling people out,” said Su Ching-hui of the Tawain Local Fire Department.

Authorities said the earthquake and aftershocks also caused 24 landslides and damage to 35 roads, bridges and tunnels.