Taipei: The magnitude 5.2 earthquake that shook eastern and southern Taiwan on Monday morning was determined to be an independent event, separate from the series of earthquakes that have been affecting southern Taiwan over the past week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) reported.
According to Focus Taiwan, the earthquake struck at 8:18 a.m., with its epicenter located 10.2 kilometers west of Taitung County Hall in southeastern Taiwan. The quake had a depth of 6.5 kilometers, classifying it as a very shallow earthquake. Fortunately, there were no immediate reports of damage from the temblor.
The intensity of the earthquake, which measures the actual effect of a quake, reached its peak in Taitung and Pingtung counties, registering a 4 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The tremors were generally felt in areas south of Taichung, as stated by Chao Hsiao-ling, an official at the CWA Seismological Center during a news briefing on Monday.
Chao noted that aftershocks from the magnitude 6.4 earthquake that struck Dapu in Chiayi County on January 21 have been gradually decreasing. However, she cautioned that large-scale temblors may still occur over the next two weeks. As of 8:37 a.m. on Monday, there have been a total of 118 aftershocks from the Dapu quake, with 33 classified as "remarkable earthquakes," meaning they were felt over a radius of 300 kilometers.