Taiwan Rocked by Strongest Earthquake in 25 Years

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Materials

April 03, 2024

Proficient

Exercise 1

Vocabulary

Repeat each word, definition, and example sentence after your tutor.

debris

Noun

dəˈbriː

pieces of material that are left after something is destroyed or broken

Investigators say they will study any debris they can find in order to figure out what caused the plane crash.

evacuate

Verb

ɪˈvækjuːˌeɪt

to leave or make people leave a place because it is dangerous

The fire department ordered residents to evacuate the building immediately due to a gas leak.

aftershock

Noun

ˈæftərˌʃɑːk

a smaller earthquake that happens after a large earthquake

The earthquake was followed by a strong aftershock that caused further damage to the building.

landslide

Noun

ˈlændslaɪd

a large amount of dirt, rock, etc. that has fallen or is falling down the side of a hill

Studies have shown that deforestation increases the risk of landslides in vulnerable areas.

magnitude

Noun

ˈmægnɪˌtuːd

a measurement of how strong or violent an earthquake is

In 2022, a 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck a remote part of Afghanistan, leaving over 1,000 people dead.

seismic

Adjective

ˈsaɪzmɪk

relating to earthquakes and other movements of the earth's surface

Seismic activity in California often causes frequent, small-scale earthquakes.

Exercise 2

Article

Read the article aloud on your own or repeat each paragraph after your tutor.

AI Generated Audio––:–– / ––:––

Taiwan Rocked by Strongest Earthquake in 25 Years

Taiwan's strongest earthquake in 25 years rocked the island during the morning rush hour on April 3, damaging buildings and highways and causing the deaths of at least nine people.

Officials confirmed that at least nine people were killed and over 1,000 injured in the quake that struck Hualien County just before 8 a.m.

A five-story building in Hualien appeared heavily damaged, collapsing its first floor and leaving the rest leaning at a 45-degree angle. In the capital Taipei, tiles fell from older buildings and debris fell from some building sites.

Schools evacuated their students to sports fields, equipping them with yellow safety helmets as aftershocks continued.

Train service was suspended across the island of 23 million people, as was subway service in Taipei, where a newly constructed above-ground line partially separated.

Traffic along the east coast was at a standstill, with landslides and falling debris hitting tunnels and highways in the mountainous region.

Taiwan is regularly rocked by earthquakes and prepares for them with drills at schools and notices issued via public media and mobile phone.

However, this earthquake was strong enough to scare people who are used to such shaking.

"I had never felt such intense shaking before," Taipei resident Hsien-hsuen Keng said.

She said her fifth-floor apartment shook so hard that "apart from earthquake drills in elementary school, this was the first time I had experienced such a situation."

Taiwan's worst quake in recent years struck on September 21, 1999, with a magnitude of 7.7, causing 2,400 deaths, injuring around 100,000 and destroying thousands of buildings.

Taiwan's earthquake monitoring agency gave the magnitude as 7.2 while the US Geological Survey put it at 7.4. It struck about 18 kilometers south-southwest of Hualien and was about 35 kilometers deep. Many aftershocks followed.

The earthquake was felt in Shanghai and several provinces along China's southeastern coast, according to Chinese media. China and Taiwan are about 160 kilometers apart.