A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck waters off eastern Taiwan early on September 29.
The epicenter was in waters 33.3km southeast of the Hualien County Government, and the strongest shaking was recorded in the Hualien area.
How did the intensity of the same earthquake appear from the east to central Taiwan and parts of the west?
3-line summary
1. Magnitude 5.0 earthquake in waters off eastern Taiwan
2. Maximum intensity 3 recorded in Hualien County
3. The intensity distribution across multiple regions should be distinguished
Occurring off the coast of Hualien at 2:20 a.m.
According to a Newtalk newspaper report citing data from Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration, the earthquake occurred at 2:20 a.m. on September 29. Its magnitude was 5.0, and the epicenter was located at 23.75 degrees north latitude and 121.81 degrees east longitude. The location was given as waters off eastern Taiwan, 33.3km southeast of the Hualien County Government.
The focal depth was 16.3km. Yahoo newspaper introduced the earthquake as a shallow earthquake and reported that disaster-prevention alert messages had been sent to Hualien County. However, these reports focused on the location and intensity information and did not present grounds for concluding the extent of damage.
Maximum intensity 3 in Hualien, 2 and 1 in surrounding areas
The highest intensity was 3 in Hualien County. An intensity of 3 was recorded in Shou-lien, Hualien City, Yanliao, and Tongmen, while an intensity of 2 or 1 was observed at other locations in Hualien County, including Dongpu, Guangfu, and Taroko.
The maximum intensity was 2 in Taitung County, Nantou County, Yilan County, Taichung City, and Changhua County. These areas included Changbin in Taitung County; Aowanda and Hehuanshan in Nantou County; Nan’ao and Nanshan in Yilan County; Lishan and Wufeng in Taichung City; and Lukang in Changhua County.
A maximum intensity of 1 was recorded in Chiayi County and Chiayi City, Taoyuan City, Yunlin County, Miaoli County, Hsinchu County, and Tainan City. The maximum intensity in Hualien alone cannot be taken to mean that the shaking was the same in other areas, and it is important to examine the announced intensity distribution by region together to understand the scope of this earthquake.
Common points in the two reports covering the same earthquake
The Yahoo newspaper and Newtalk newspaper reports consistently gave the time of occurrence as 2:20 a.m. on September 29, the magnitude as 5.0, and the focal depth as 16.3km. The epicenter location was also the same: waters off eastern Taiwan, 33.3km southeast of the Hualien County Government.
The figure that stands out particularly in both reports is the maximum intensity of 3 in Hualien County. Earthquake magnitude and regional intensity are not the same expression, so in this case it is more accurate to check the overall figure of magnitude 5.0 separately from the intensities announced for each area, including Hualien, Taitung, and Nantou.
References
Tags #TaiwanEarthquake #HualienEarthquake #WatersOffEasternTaiwan #Magnitude5Earthquake #HualienCounty #EarthquakeIntensity #TaiwanCentralWeatherAdministration #HualienCity #TaitungCounty #NantouCounty #YilanCounty #TaichungEarthquake