Firefighters douse a fire at a factory in Tainan County that erupted soon after the earthquake struck neighboring Kaohsiung County in southern Taiwan yesterday.

No fatalities reported, but at least 13 injured in jolt that damaged 99 schools, collapsed other buildings

An earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale struck southern Taiwan at around 8:18 am yesterday, injuring more than a dozen people.

Falling objects, including a tree, injured people in south Taiwan after the quake, said Liang Yu-chu, a spokesman with Taiwan's National Fire Administration disaster response center.

At least 13 persons in Chiayi County were injured, including 10 students at an elementary school. Most of them were struck by falling tree branches and furniture and pieces of collapsed walls.

The temblor also caused the collapse of at least three old buildings and a bridge in Kaohsiung County. A number of fires broke out, including one at a textile factory in Tainan County that resulted in financial losses of an estimated NT$100 million.

A total of 99 schools around Taiwan were damaged by the quake, resulting in financial losses estimated at NT$40 million, according to the "Ministry of Education".

Services on the southern half of Taiwan's high-speed rail and other train services were suspended. The Kaohsiung City subway service was disrupted, but resumed later in the morning.

The quake, which was felt 400 kilometers away in Taipei City, caused power outages in the capital and disrupted the power supply to 54,000 households in the south.

The epicenter of the quake was 43 kilometers northeast of Pingtung City, at a depth of 5 kilometers, according to the Central Weather Bureau.

The quake caused a brief dip in the island's stock market, with semiconductor firms including TSMC, the world's No.1 contract chip maker, falling on concerns production could be hit.

Services on the southern half of Taiwan's high-speed rail linking Taipei with the south were stopped pending safety checks.

An official of the Tainan Science Industrial Park, which houses plants of many tech firms, including TSMC, UMC and Chi Mei, said that no big production losses were likely and that electricity supply remains normal.

The epicenter of the quake was in the mountains northeast of the city of Kaohsiung at a depth of 5 km, the Central Weather Bureau said.

No major damage was reported near the epicenter, a rural area hit hard in August by a deadly typhoon, Liang said.

Taiwan uses the Richter scale to measure earthquake intensity. The US Geological Survey put the quake's magnitude at 6.4, revised from an initial 6.5 and put the depth at 35km.

The quake was felt in the capital Taipei, where buildings shook for several minutes. Officials in the southern county of Chiayi reported some objects falling off rooftops.

Taiwan leader Ma Ying-jeou issued a directive to relevant government agencies to stay abreast of developments and provide necessary assistance, according to "Presidential Office" spokesman Lo Chih-chiang.

Ma also activated an earthquake response mechanism and asked the "National Fire Agency" and the 8th Army Corps to obtain up-to-date first-hand information about the quake, Lo said.

"Premier" Wu Den-yih called on local government heads in southern Taiwan to submit requests for government assistance. Military helicopters, troops and firefighters were sent to the area to assess the damage, check for casualties and provide relief support.

China Daily/Agencies

Elementary school children lie low, hands over their heads as instructed by their teacher, in the school yard after evacuating the classrooms in Kaohsiung County. Photos by CNA

(HK Edition 03/05/2010 page8)