Moderate quake rocks Taiwan

TERRA.WIRE

Moderate quake rocks Taiwan
TAIPEI, Jan 23 (AFP) Jan 23, 2006
An earthquake measuring 4.9 on the Richter scale jolted Taiwan Monday, the national seismology center said, but there were no reports of casualties or damage.

The quake struck at 12:18 pm (0418 GMT), with the epicenter located 54 kilometers (33 miles) off the island's east coast, at a depth of around three kilometers, it said.

Taiwan, which lies near the junction of two tectonic plates, is regularly hit by earthquakes.

The worst recorded, measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale, hit the island in September 1999 and left some 2,400 people dead.