Strong quake shakes Taiwan, no damage reported

TAIPEI, Oct 24 (Reuters) – Buildings shook in Taipei on Sunday as an earthquake of magnitude 6.5 struck northeastern Taiwan, but there were no reports of damage.

It had a depth of 66.8 km (41.5 miles), and could be felt across the northern and eastern parts of Taiwan, with the epicentre in Yilan county, the weather bureau added.

The Taipei metro was briefly closed for checks, but re-opened shortly afterwards. The state-run power operator said the grid was operating as normal.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (TSMC) , the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said it had evacuated some workers.

“Personnel at certain TSMC fabs in north Taiwan evacuated during the earthquake as per company procedure, and all safety systems functioned normally,” it said in a brief statement.

Taiwan lies near the junction of two tectonic plates and is prone to earthquakes.

More than 100 people were killed in a quake in southern Taiwan in 2016, while a 7.3 magnitude quake killed more than 2,000 people in 1999. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard and Yimou Lee; Additional reporting by Bhargav Acharya in Bengaluru; Editing by William Mallard and Kim Coghill)