7.2 earthquake hits Taipei, Taiwan

A 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit Taipei, Taiwan's capital, on Wednesday morning. The Director of Taipei's Seismology Centre announced that this earthquake was the "strongest in 25 years". Taiwan's government said seven people had died in the sparsely populated mountainous eastern county of Hualien, where the epicenter was, with at least 711 injured. In addition, the fire department reported that at least 26 buildings have collapsed, with over half of them located in Hualien. The department added that in one of the most severely damaged structures, 22 people were rescued, leaving only one person missing. On the other hand, the Philippines issued a warning of "high tsunami waves" and urged the evacuation of coastal regions across the country. Soon after, a government official confirmed that flights were promptly suspended at the primary airport in Japan's southern region of Okinawa on Wednesday due to a tsunami alert.