Earthquake in Taipei destroys hotel

Taiwanese living in Belize are anxiously watching their televisions and using the Internet to get information on a massive earthquake that struck Taipei, Taiwan today leveling a twelve story hotel and a row of houses in a nearby suburb. Initial reports from Taiwanese media confirm at least thirty-eight dead with possibly a hundred or more people trapped in the rubble of the Sungshan Hotel near the Sungshan Railway Station. A row of homes in Chang Hua County in central Taiwan also collapsed killing at least three. Tsunami, or tidal wave, warnings have been issued for Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, Guam and Palau. The U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Center is giving a preliminary magnitude of seven point six on the Richter scale and an epi-center ninety miles south-southwest of Taipei. The quake hit at one forty-five a.m. local time and was followed by six aftershocks. Parts of the city are still without electricity. The Embassy of the Republic of China, Taiwan in Belize says at this time they do not know anything more than what is being reported by international media and the Internet, but they are monitoring the situation and hope to know more tomorrow. The Sungshan Hotel is in the Chaing Kai-Shek district which is where the Central American Summit was held earlier this month. A delegation from Belize, headed by the Deputy Prime Minister Johnny Briceño attended the various events at facilities in this downtown area of Taipei.