The Taiwan Central Weather Bureau
reported a Magnitude 5.6 Earthquake at a depth of 30.3 km roughly 54 kn off the coast of Hualian County in eastern Taiwan slightly after 5.20 am
local time on Sunday 16 December 2018 (slightly after 9.20 pm GMT on Saturday 15 December). There are no reports of any damage or casualties associated with this event, but it was felt across much of northern Taiwan.
The approximate location of the 16 December 2018 Hualian Earthquake. USGS.
Taiwan has a complex tectonic setting, lying on the boundary between the
Eurasian and Philippine Plates, with the Eurasian Plate being subducted
beneath the Philippine Plate in the South and the Philippine Plate
being subducted beneath the Eurasian in the East. Subduction is not a
smooth process even in simple settings, with plates typically sticking
together as pressure from tectonic expansion elsewhere builds up, then
suddenly breaking apart and shifting abruptly, causing Earthquakes.
The motion of the tectonic plates beneath Taiwan. The University of Memphis.
Witness
accounts of Earthquakes can help geologists to understand these events,
and the structures that cause them. The international non-profit
organisation Earthquake Report is interested in hearing from people who may have felt this event; if you felt this quake then you can report it to Earthquake Report here.
See also...
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