Taiwan is rocked by earthquake measuring 6.9

An earthquake measuring 6.9 on the Richter scale rocked Taiwan early this morning, the central weather bureau said.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

The tremor was registered at 1:53 a.m. with its epicentre at 55 km northeast of Chengkung town on the eastern part of the island and 30 km underground.

Last week, a quake with a magnitude of 6.4 hit the southern county of Chiayi, renewing fears that more serious tremors could well strike the area following a massive earthquake on September 21st.

That fatal quake, measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale and the biggest to hit the island this century, left more than 2,400 dead and an estimated 11,000 injured.