Schools, offices in Hualien County closed Tuesday

Taipei, April 23 (CNA) The Hualien County government has announced the closure of schools and offices in the county on Tuesday after a string of earthquakes of magnitude 5 and above struck eastern Taiwan Monday night and early Tuesday morning.

The temblors included two of magnitude 6 and 6.3, which struck at 2:26 a.m. and 2:32 a.m. Tuesday, respectively, according to the Central Weather Administration.

Since then, there have been another 10 significant earthquakes ranging from magnitude 5.0 to 5.9 that have been centered in either central Hualien or off the coast of the county as of 7 a.m. Tuesday.

Two buildings in downtown Hualien City partially collapsed and tilted during the early morning earthquake strikes. There were no reports of anyone trapped in the buildings, according to local authorities.