HUALIEN, Taiwan/Xinhua
The death toll increased to ten due to the earthquake of magnitude 7.3 on the Richter scale that occurred Wednesday morning in China’s Taiwan, local authorities reported Thursday.
After today’s rescue efforts, focused on the Taroko Park region in Hualien district, about 150 people who had been trapped were rescued, an official from the search and rescue group said.
By 9:00 p.m., the number of people injured by the earthquake was 1,067. A total of 660 people remain trapped and 38 have not yet been located.
Of those still trapped, more than 600 are in a hotel within Taroko Gorge National Park or a nearby activity center.
Large landslides caused by the powerful earthquake have hampered the rescue operation and made it impossible to quickly restore transportation services, the official said.
He also confirmed that the people who remain trapped are safe for the moment and that they have enough food and water for about four days.
The official also noted that it is difficult to predict when all those trapped will be rescued. If necessary, measures will be taken to airdrop food to the location.
At 7:58 a.m. on Wednesday, the earthquake shook the sea area near Hualien County in Taiwan.
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