TAIPEI - November 5, 2009 — A strong, 6.0-magnitude earthquake hit central Taiwan on Thursday, the government said, with initial reports stating that one person had suffered minor injuries.The quake struck at 5:32 pm (0932 GMT) in Nantou county, the Central Weather Bureau said. It could be felt as far away as Taipei in the north of the island.
The high-speed railway system linking the capital city in the north and the second biggest city Kaohsiung in the south was forced to shut down temporarily, the company said.
An official at the National Fire Agency said a female student in Taiping city, central Taiwan, suffered minor injuries to her head when she was hit by debris falling from the ceiling of her classroom.
The quake also caused cracks to houses and power failures in 1,200 of homes in the area, the official told AFP by telephone.
Four aftershocks, with one measuring 5.7, hit central Taiwan within two hours of the first quake, the Central Weather Bureau said.
The 6.0-magnitude quake was the biggest one to hit in Nantou area in 10 years, after a 7.6-magnitude quake killed around 2,400 people in 1999.
Taiwan is regularly hit by earthquakes as the island lies near the junction of two tectonic plates.
