Moderate quake rocks Taiwan, no damage reported

Moderate quake rocks Taiwan, no damage reported
REUTERS

TAIPEI, DEC 30: A moderate earthquake rocked Taiwan early on Saturday but there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.

Seismologists at the Central Weather Bureau said theearthquake, registering 5.4 on the open-ended Richter scale, struck at 2.03 a.M (1803 GMT).

It was centred 10.6 km (6.6 miles) southeast of thenortheastern coastal city of Ilan.

The quake was felt in most parts of the island, but theinterior ministry said it had not received any reports of casualties or damage.

Earthquakes occur frequently in Taiwan.

A strong earthquake, measuring between 7.3 to 7.6 on theRichter scale, and a series of strong aftershocks hit the island in September 1999, killing 2,400 people and wrecking 52,000 buildings.