Strongest earthquake in 25 years hits Taiwan; 7 dead, over 700 injured

A strong 7.7-magnitude earthquake hit Taiwan's east a little before 8 am local time on Wednesday which prompted tsunami warnings in the island along with parts of southern Japan. 

The massive earthquake resulted in deaths of 7 people and injured 736, according to media reports. All the deaths were reported from Hualien County, a mountainous region along Taiwan's eastern coast that was the epicenter of the quake, reported the Hindustan Times.

According to Taiwan's Central Weather Administration, the quake was centered just off the east coast at a depth of 15.5km (9.6 miles). 

Philippines had also issued a tsunami warning and ordered the evacuation of coastal areas after the Taiwan quake but cancelled its tsunami warning after lower risk of any waves.

Japan's Meteorological Agency put the magnitude at 7.7 while the United States Geological Survey or USGS said the earthquake had a magnitude of 7.4, with its epicenter 18 kilometers south of Taiwan's Hualien City at a depth of 34.8 km.

The director of Taipei's Seismology Centre said the earthquake that hit Taiwan's east was “the strongest in 25 years”.

"The earthquake is close to land and it's shallow. It's felt all over Taiwan and offshore islands... it's the strongest in 25 years since the (1999) earthquake," Wu Chien-fu told reporters, referring to a September 1999 quake with 7.6-magnitude that killed 2,400 people.