The people of Taiwan were thrown into panic after a strong earthquake rattled eastern Taiwan early Thursday afternoon.

According to various reports, the earthquake caused scattered light damage in the country’s capital and its eastern coast region.

Rail traffic was reportedly suspended for a while after water pipes burst at the city’s train station — While schools along the east coast were evacuated. School children were seen holding their backpacks over their heads for protection.

Residents reported also that they felt buildings shake, and a multi-story building was seen leaning against its neighbour after its foundation shifted, at Taipei, about 71 miles from the epicentre.

The subway system in the was reportedly suspended service.

Schools, work sites, water, power and transit lines were checked for damage, no serious problems were found, Premier Su Tseng-chang — Adding that cracked road surfaces on the east coast could become a problem if rain were to fall soon.

Taking to social media, some people in Chinese cities close to the Taiwan Strait dividing the island from mainland China said they felt the quake.

It will interest you to know that Taiwan is located on the string of seismic faults around the Pacific Ocean also referred to “Rim of Fire” and not new to frequent tremors.

In 1999, an earthquake in that region killed at least 2,300 people. In February 2018 in Hualien, four buildings partially collapsed killing 17 people after a quake.

Meanwhile, 15 people had been earlier killed after an apartment building in the southwestern city of Tainan collapsed in an earthquake.