Magnitude 5.1 Earthquake in Puli, Nantou; Aftershocks Expected in the Coming Week

Taipei, 17th (CNA) - A magnitude 5.1 earthquake occurred in Puli, Nantou this morning. The Central Weather Administration's Seismological Center has judged this to be an independent event and advises vigilance for aftershocks of magnitude 4 to 4.5 in the coming week. According to the latest information from the CWA, a Richter scale magnitude 5.1 earthquake occurred at 8:46 AM today. The quake's depth was 15.5 kilometers, and its epicenter was located 33.5 kilometers east-northeast of the Nantou County Government building (in Puli Township, Nantou County), with the highest intensity of 4 felt in Nantou County. Chen Ta-yi, a section chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, stated at a press conference that the earthquake was caused by the collision of the Philippine Sea Plate moving northwest against the Eurasian Plate. The epicenter is in a seismically active area, caused by long-term stress accumulation and fracturing of the strata. Chen said the seismological center issued national-level alerts for Nantou County, Changhua County, and Taichung City. Although the intensity reached 4 at the epicenter, the duration was not long. However, because it was a shallow earthquake, it was felt across almost all of Taiwan. Chen reminded the public that this was a single, independent seismic event and that aftershocks of magnitude 4 to 4.5 should be expected in the coming week. Chen pointed out that statistically, from 2000 to the present, within a 30-kilometer radius of the epicenter, there have been 15 earthquakes of magnitude 5 or greater, including today's. The most recent one was in 2021. Therefore, today's earthquake did not occur in a place where earthquakes have never happened before. Under the premise of some existing seismic activity, weaker areas accumulate stress and deform, and when they can no longer withstand the stress, they rupture, releasing energy.