Taiwan earthquake live updates: Seven people crushed to death in landslides as experts warn more tremors will hit the island

Authorities said that 77 people are confirmed to be trapped in tunnels and underneath buildings.

Most of them, roughly 60, are trapped in a tunnel just north of Hualien city, with two Germans among those trapped in another tunnel.

Today’s 7.4-magnitude earthquake is the strongest to have hit the island in 25 years.

The last quake with a similar strength hit Taiwan in September 1999, killing around 2,400 people in the deadliest natural disaster in the island’s history.

Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida said his nation ‘stands ready to provide any assistance necessary to Taiwan’, following the 7.4-magnitude earthquake.

Kishida took to X to say: ‘I am deeply saddened to hear that a large earthquake has occurred in eastern Taiwan, causing extensive damage.

‘I would like to express my heartfelt sympathies to those affected. We are grateful for the heartwarming support we received from our dear friends in Taiwan during the Great East Japan Earthquake and the recent Noto Peninsula earthquake.’

Children in Japan’s Okinawa prefecture were made to leave their schools and go up to higher ground after a tsunami warning was issued.

The Japan Meteorological Agency said a tsunami wave roughly 30 centimetres tall was detected on the coast of Yonaguni island about 15 minutes after the quake struck. Smaller waves were measured on the islands of Ishigaki and Miyako.

Japan sent military aircraft to gather information about the impact around the Okinawa region, but the nation has since rescinded its tsunami warning

New images have revealed how badly Taiwan’s Hualien City was hit by the magnitude-7.4 quake, which struck south of the city just before 8:00 am local time (0000 GMT).

Authorities said that 736 people have been injured in the devastation wrought by the earthquake.

Taiwanese authorities said all the deaths caused by the earthquake occured in Hualien county, a mountainous part of Taiwan.

The government of Taiwan has announced that the death toll for the deadly earthquake has risen to seven. So far, more than 700 people have been injured by the quake, though the extent of the injuries suffered is not known.