Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Taiwan from the mouth of the Hualien River in the north to Taitung County in the south.
The Xueshan Range lies to the northwest of the Central Mountain Range. Xueshan, the
main peak, is 3886m high.
Flanking the Central Mountain Range to the southwest is the Yushan Range, home to
the eponymous Yushan (Jade Mountain). At 3952m, Yushan is Taiwan's pinnacle and
one of the tallest mountains in northeast Asia. The Alishan Range sits west, separated by
the Kaoping River valley.
NATURAL DISASTERS: EARTHQUAKES, TYPHOONS & LANDSLIDES
Taiwan is in a singular geological and climatic setting. It is highly susceptible to
earthquakes and typhoons, while heavy rainfalls exacerbate the risk of landslides.
Earrtthquak
quakes
Geologically Taiwan is on one of the most complex and active tectonic collision
zones on earth. Sitting atop the ever-colliding (albeit slowly colliding) Eurasian and
Philippine plates has given Taiwan the beautiful mountains, scenic gorges and
amazing hot springs that keep people coming back. Alas, these same geological
forces also put the island smack dab in earthquake central, meaning that nary a
week goes by without some form of noticeable seismic activity. Most of these
quakes are small tremors, only noticed by folks living in the upper storeys of build-
ings as a gentle, peculiar rocking sensation. Others can be far more nerve-wrack-
ing to locals and visitors alike.
One quake on the southern coast in late 2006 caused only a few casualties, but
severed several underground cables, disrupting telephone and internet service
across Asia. On 4 March 2010 an earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale
with an epicentre 362km south of Taiwan's southernmost city caused buildings to
tremble as far north as Taipei, knocking out power and rail service for a short time
and causing several injuries. The most devastating earthquake to hit Taiwan is re-
membered locally simply as '9-21' after the date it occurred, 21 September 1999.
Measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale, the earthquake collapsed buildings and killed
thousands. Damage caused by the 9-21 earthquake - especially the dramatic col-
lapse of buildings in commercial and residential neighbourhoods - led to the pas-
sage of laws requiring that new buildings be designed to withstand future earth-
quakes of high magnitude.
Typphoons
Common during the summer months in the western Pacific area and the China
seas, typhoons are tropical cyclones that form when warm moist air meets low
pressure conditions. Taiwan experiences yearly tropical storms, some of which
reach typhoon level. Having better infrastructure than many of its neighbours,
