2010 Kaohsiung earthquake

The 2010 Kaohsiung earthquake, measuring 6.3 Mw, occurred on March 4 at 8:20 a.m. local time. The epicenter was located in the mountainous area of Kaohsiung County (now part of Kaohsiung City) of the southwestern Taiwan.[3] It was the most powerful earthquake in Kaohsiung since 1900.[4] The earthquake did not cause any deaths, but 96 people were injured.

2010 Kaohsiung earthquakes
2010 Kaohsiung earthquake is located in Taiwan
2010 Kaohsiung earthquake
UTC time2010-03-04 00:18:51
ISC event14351162
USGS-ANSSComCat
Local dateMarch 4, 2010 (2010-03-04)
Local time08:18:51
Magnitude6.3 Mw[1]
Depth5 kilometres (3 mi)[2]
Epicenter22.92°N 120.8°E / 22.92; 120.8[1]
Areas affectedSouthern Taiwan
Max. intensityVI (Strong)[1]
Casualties96 injuries[1]

Tectonic setting

Taiwan lies on the boundary between the Eurasian Plate and the Philippine Sea Plate, which are converging at 80 mm per year. The island is the result of uplift caused by the collision between the northern end of the Luzon Arc and the continental margin of China.[5]

Damage

Electricity

The earthquake caused the tripping of several power stations in Taiwan, leading to a loss of 1,860 MW of electricity. Some transformers and substations on the electrical grid caused power outage to 545,066 houses on the island. Electricity was fully restored before 11:30 a.m.[6][7]

Transportation

A bridge which connects Kaohsiung and Pingtung was blocked when it sank after the earthquake.[6] Some THSR trains were disrupted,[8] and one was de-railed while emergency braking.[9]

Buildings

340 buildings and several schools were damaged by the quake. A religious building and some old structures collapsed.[10]

Factories

A fire, which cost about 100 million TWD, occurred at a factory of the Everest Textile Co., Ltd (宏遠興業) in Tainan County (now part of Tainan City),[11] The quake also caused around 1 billion NTD in losses to several manufacturers in a high-tech industrial park.[12]

Aftershocks

The earthquake was followed by several aftershocks; the largest had a magnitude of 5.7 on the Richter scale on April 25.[13]

Government response

While the government continues to monitor the situation, Taiwan's Ministry of Defense dispatched troops to Jiasian.

See also

References
  1. USGS, M6.3 - Taiwan, United States Geological Survey
  2. "Earthquake report". Central Weather Bureau. 2010-03-05. Archived from the original on 2009-07-07. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
  3. 張榮祥 (2010-03-04). "甲仙地震 台南多起電梯受困及火警". CNA. Archived from the original on 2013-12-11. Retrieved 2010-03-04.
  4. "6.4 quake hits southern Taiwan". The China Post. 2010-03-05. Archived from the original on 6 March 2010. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
  5. Lin A.T.; Yao B.; Hsu S.-K.; Liu C.-S.; Huang S.-Y. (2009). "Tectonic features of the incipient arc-continent collision zone of Taiwan: Implications for seismicity". Tectonophysics. 479 (1–2): 28–42. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.503.1391. doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2008.11.004.
  6. "Earthquake injures 64; 545,066 homes suffer blackouts". The China Post. 2010-03-05. Archived from the original on 7 March 2010. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
  7. "Taiwan power company-Taipower Events". Taipower.com.tw. Archived from the original on 2014-05-17. Retrieved 2014-06-03.
  8. Theodorou, Christine; Lee, Andrew (2010-03-03). "6.4-magnitude quake hits southern Taiwan". CNN. Archived from the original on 5 March 2010. Retrieved 2010-03-04.
  9. 彭群弼 (2010-03-04). "甲仙強震 高鐵首度在營運中出軌". BCC. Archived from the original on March 7, 2010. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
  10. "楊秋興勘災 探內門紫竹寺". Sina. 2010-03-07. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
  11. "Powerful 6.4-magnitude earthquake hits southern Taiwan; no tsunami alert issued". Associated Press /nydailynews.com. 2010-03-04. Retrieved 2010-03-04.
  12. "強震衝擊產業 損失逾11億". Apple Daily. 2010-03-04. Archived from the original on 7 March 2010. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
  13. 張嘉芳 (2010-03-03). "高雄甲仙餘震頻傳 最大規模5.7". Radio Taiwan International. Archived from the original on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2010-03-04.
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