A powerful earthquake measuring 7 on the Richter scale jolted Taiwan and the far south of Japan on Friday, leaving at least one person injured. The quake occurred at 12:08 p.m. (0408 GMT) with its epicentre 110 kilometres off Taiwan's northwest coast, 58.8 kilometres under the sea, Taiwan's Central Weather Bureau said. One woman in Taoyuan County, west of Taipei, was injured when a water tank tumbled off the roof of her house. The quake triggered a fire in an electronics factory in Taoyuan County. After the quake, the elevated Taipei Mass Rapid Transit System suspended operation. The 508-metre Taipei 101 - the world's tallest building - swayed during the quake but was otherwise intact. It was the strongest quake to hit Taiwan since September 21, 1999, when an earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale struck central Taiwan, killing 2,400 people. The Japan Meteorological Agency measured the quake at 6.6 on the Richter scale and placed the epicentre near Yonakuni Island in Okinawa, just west of Taiwan. No injuries were reported in Japan. Taiwan sits on the circum-Pacific seismic belt, which also covers the Aleutian Islands, the Philippines, Indonesia and New Zealand. About 68 per cent of the world's earthquakes strike this area. However, most of the earthquakes cause little damage in Taiwan because they occur off Taiwan's east coast. The 1999 earthquake caused severe casualties and damage because its epicentre was in central Taiwan.
