Series of earthquakes jolt Chiayi, including a magnitude 5.6 temblor

Taipei, Jan. 30 (CNA) A series of earthquakes struck Chiayi County in southern Taiwan on Thursday morning, including a magnitude 5.6 temblor, the strongest of the quakes, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA).

The epicenter of the magnitude 5.6 earthquake, which occurred at 10:11 a.m., was located in Dapu Township, 40.5 kilometers southeast of Chiayi County Hall, at a depth of 10 kilometers, CWA data indicated.

The quake's intensity, which measures the actual effects of a seismic event, was highest in Chiayi County, where it registered 5 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale.

Five smaller earthquakes occurred in Dapu later in the morning: a magnitude 3.4 temblor at 10:13 a.m., a magnitude 4.3 temblor at 10:15 a.m., a magnitude 3.2 temblor at 10:21 a.m., a magnitude 3.3 at 10:21 a.m., and another magnitude 3.4 temblor at 11:20 a.m.

According to the CWA's Seismological Center, the series of earthquakes are aftershocks of the magnitude 6.4 earthquake that hit Dapu on Jan. 21.

More aftershocks are expected in the coming week, the center said.