Taipei, Taiwan — A series of earthquakes shook Taiwan early Tuesday; the strongest measured a magnitude of 6.1, according to the United States Geological Survey. There was no immediate information on damage or casualties.
The tremors came after a magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck the island earlier this month, killing 13 people and injuring more than 1,000. That earthquake was centered along the coast of rural, mountainous Hualien County. It was the strongest earthquake in Taiwan in 25 years and was followed by hundreds of aftershocks.
According to the USGS, Tuesday’s magnitude 6.1 earthquake was centered 28 kilometers (17.5 miles) south of the city of Hualien, at a depth of 10.7 kilometers. The half-dozen other earthquakes ranged between magnitude 4.5 and magnitude 6, all near Hualien.
Taiwan is no stranger to powerful earthquakes, but their cost to the high-tech island’s 23 million residents has been relatively contained thanks to its excellent earthquake preparedness, experts say. The island also has strict building regulations and extensive public education campaigns about earthquakes.
In 1999, a 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Taiwan killed 2,400 people.