At least three people have been reported to have died after an earthquake in Taiwan measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale hit the city of Tainan, demolishing residential buildings and leaving people trapped under the rubble.
Emergency rescue teams were trying to reach those caught by debris, but there have been no reported casualties.
Camera crews filmed their efforts using ladders to scale the mountains of rubble while social media was gripped by a collapsing eight-storey block.
The quake on Saturday has leveled at least four buildings including one high-rise apartment block, causing power outages, and could be felt 300 km away in the capital Taipei, where aftershocks have been reported.
Taiwan is on the cross of two tectonic plates and often sees tremors.
The quake was one of the biggest since 1999, when an earthquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale killed more than 2,300 people.
