Powerful quake jolts Taiwan, four killed, more than 200 injured

Sunday, March 31st 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) _ A powerful earthquake jolted Taiwan on Sunday afternoon, killing four people as cranes and scaffolding at a high-rise building site went crashing to the ground, authorities said.

More than 200 injuries were reported across the island, most of them minor, as the 6.8-magnitude quake started fires, shattered windows and cracked walls.

In Taipei, the capital, buildings rocked back and forth, cracks appeared in walls and frightened people ran from homes and churches. State radio said that gas leaks started several small fires.

Four people were killed when two cranes fell from the 60th floor of a high-rise building under construction, police said. Police did not identify the four, but television reports said that two crane operators and two other construction workers were killed.

One crane brought down large sections of scaffolding, witnesses said. The second crane fell down the other side of the building and smashed several cars, they said.

About 10 people were hurt by the falling debris, including a woman whose hand was severed when part of a crane came crashing down on her car.

The building _ the Taipei Financial Center _ will be Taipei's tallest when completed, towering more than 100 stories high.

Rescue workers pulled out seven people, including three children, from an old four-story building in downtown Taipei that partially collapsed and tilted toward the street. No other people were believed trapped inside.

Wang Mei-man was on the third floor of her brothers' office in downtown Taipei when the quake struck. The entire room shook, including tables and other heavy furniture.

``I was scared to death,'' she said.

The government's Disaster Control Center said that some 213 people were injured across the island, but most of the injuries reported were minor.

Landslides along the island's east coast disrupted highway traffic, and Taipei's subway system was closed for four hours for damage inspection. Flights continued as scheduled from Taiwan's two international airports, however.

The Central Weather Bureau said that the quake was centered off the coastal city of Hualien, 108 miles east of Taipei, the island's capital. It struck at 2:53 p.m. and lasted for nearly a minute, the bureau said.

Seismologists said that the quake was relatively shallow compared with most that hit Taiwan. It was felt throughout the island and was centered about 6 miles below the ocean floor.

Over 60 aftershocks were registered following the quake, including one with a magnitude of 4.7.

Authorities in Japan issued warned inhabitants of its southernmost island chain to be on the alert for tsunami _ waves that can be generated by seismic activity. Small tsunami waves of up to 8 inches reached Yonaguni, the closest island in the chain to Taiwan, but the alerts were later lifted.

Tremors frequently shake Taiwan, but most cause little or no damage. However, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake in September 1999 killed 2,378 people and destroyed more than 40,000 homes.