Magnitude 5.5 aftershocks from 6.2 afternoon quake possible: CWA

Taipei, Aug. 7 (CNA) Aftershocks from a magnitude 6.2 earthquake that struck off the coast of Yilan County at 3:45 p.m. could reach a magnitude of 5 to 5.5, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA) Thursday.

At a Thursday press conference, technical officer Chiu Chun-ta (邱俊達) of the CWA's Seismological Center explained that the epicenter of the tremblor was located around 100 kilometers away from Taiwan.

He said that while the aftershocks have been predicted to measure between magnitude 5 and 5.5, they are forecast to reach 1 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale, which gauges the actual effect of an earthquake.

Chiu went on to explain the reason behind the tremor having a longer duration in Taipei, stating that it was a side effect of the capital being in a basin.

At 3:45 p.m., an earthquake with an epicenter in waters roughly 128.9 km east-southeast of Yilan County Hall, at a depth of 88.1 km, shook Taiwan, according to CWA data.

The earthquake's intensity was highest in Yilan, Hualien, Nantou, Taichung and Taitung, where it measured 3.

The quake also measured an intensity of 2 in New Taipei, Taipei, Keelung, Hsinchu, Taoyuan, Miaoli, Chiayi, Changhua, Yunlin and Chiayi.

According to Chiu, the quake was caused by the Philippine Sea plate subducting beneath the Eurasian plate in the north.

He said Thursday's temblor was unrelated to a magnitude 8.8 earthquake that struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia on July 30.