Earthquake near Taiwan magnitude 7.5, felt in Taipei, tsunami alert issued

A powerful earthquake struck off Taiwan, rocking the entire island and collapsing buildings.

Japan issued a tsunami alert for the southern Japanese island group of Okinawa.

Taiwan media are reporting people are trapped in collapsed buildings in the city of Hualien, following the earthquake.

Japan’s meteorological agency forecast a tsunami of up to 3m. About half an hour later, it said the first wave of the tsunami, measuring 30cm, was already believed to have arrived on the coasts of Miyako and Yaeyama islands.

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Taiwan’s earthquake monitoring agency gave the magnitude as 7.2 while the US Geological Survey put it at 7.5.

Tawainese television showed buildings in Taiwan’s eastern city of Hualien shaking off their foundations.

The quake came at 7:58am and could be felt in the capital Taipei.

There is no tsunami threat to New Zealand, GNS Science and NEMA have confirmed.

A tsunami warning was also issued in the Philippines’ coastal areas fronting the Pacific Ocean.

The quake was very shallow, according to the Japan Meteorological Society.

Japan was rocked by its deadliest quake in eight years on New Year’s Day when a 7.6 magnitude temblor struck in Ishikawa prefecture, on the western coast. More than 230 people died in the quake that left 44,000 homes fully or partially destroyed.