Hualien Earthquake in Taiwan on April 3, 2024

On April 3rd, 2024 at 7:58:09 local time (UTC+8), a 7.2 magnitude earthquake occurred in the Hualien region. The epicenter of the earthquake was located offshore, about 25 km away from the government building of Hualien County at SSE direction. The intensity of the earthquake was reported as 6+ in Heping, 6- in Hualien City and Taroko, and 5- in Taipei and New Taipei City. The coordinates of the epicenter were N 23.77°, E 121.67°, and the focal depth was 15.5 km.

Hualien City has been identified as the most severely affected area in the country following recent events. Nationally, approximately 84 buildings have been severely damaged and around 8 people have either been severely injured or killed. Below, you will find a selection of pictures taken by Prof. Pierre Smars from National Yunlin University of Science & Technology after the event.

Although the damage was considerable, this potentially could have been much worse if multiple efforts had not been made to retrofit the existing infrastructure:

• Nationwide seismic assessment and retrofit program
• Seismic Retrofitting Program of School Buildings in Taiwan
• Seismic retrofit program for Taiwan school buildings after 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake

More information on structural, non-structural and geotechnical damages can be found in the Summary Report of Hualien Earthquake in Taiwan  on April 3, 2024 (first edition, v1.0) developed by the National Center for Research on Earthquake Engineering from NARLabs in Taiwan.