TAIPEI, Taiwan -- A magnitude-6.4 earthquake struck southern Taiwan early today, toppling several buildings and killing at least five people.
Rescuers in the southern Taiwanese city of Tainan pulled out at least 230 people from a residential high-rise complex that collapsed, leaving others trapped inside. At least five were dead, including four at the high-rise, according to the central disaster response center.
The fifth death was caused by falling objects at a water tower. Another 378 people were injured, the disaster response center said.
More than 1,200 firefighters and soldiers scrambled with ladders, cranes and other equipment to the building that folded like an accordion into a pile of rubble and twisted metal, and the responders extracted dazed survivors.
Media outlets said the building complex included a care center for newborns and mothers.
The emergency response center said three of the deceased were a 10-day-old child, a 55-year-old woman and a 40-year-old man. Taiwan's official news agency said the infant and the man were pulled out of a 17-story Wei Guan residential building and that both were later declared dead.
The Wei Guan residential tower was home to 256 people living in 92 units, according to the official Central News Agency. According to the disaster response center, 230 of them were rescued and 26 unaccounted for, but it was unclear how many people were inside the building at the time of the fall.
A second, 16-story high-rise nearby also collapsed, and more than 30 survivors have been pulled out from there. It wasn't clear how many others were still trapped.
Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou arrived in Tainan later in the morning and asked all rescue workers to make all-out efforts.
More than 200 firefighters, 1,350 volunteers, 70 trucks and 27 ambulances were involved in operation across the affected area.
Dozens more people were rescued or safely evacuated from a market and a seven-floor building that was badly damaged, the Central News Agency reported.
A bank building also careened, but no injuries were reported, it said.
Most people were caught asleep when the temblor struck about 4 a.m. It was located some 22 miles southeast of Yujing and struck about 6 miles underground, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
As dawn broke, live Taiwanese TV showed survivors being taken gingerly from the collapsed high-rise, including an elderly woman in a neck brace and others wrapped in blankets. The trappings of daily life -- a partially crushed air conditioner, pieces of a metal balcony, windows -- lay twisted in rubble.
People with their arms around firefighters were being helped from the building, and cranes were being used to search darkened parts of the structure for survivors. Newscasters said other areas of the city were still being canvassed for possible damage.
High-speed train services were canceled, and more than 120,000 housing units were said to be without electricity. Gas and water pipes also were reported to be damaged.
The quake was felt as a lengthy, rolling shake in the capital, Taipei, on the other side of the island. But Taipei was quiet, with no sense of emergency or obvious damage just before dawn.
Derek Hoerler, an elementary school teacher originally from California, said he woke up and felt violent shaking.
"It was not a rolling gentle earthquake, but a violent jerking motion. The walls were shaking and you could hear the building and windows moving," said Hoerler, who lives in New Taipei City and was visiting family members in Kaohsiung City when the quake hit. "It lasted at least a minute with swaying afterwards. I felt complete terror.
"Biggest earthquake I've felt, and I'm from California," said Hoerler, 37. "Now I just feel worried for the people in Tainan, where buildings collapsed."
Facebook has activated its "safety check" feature for Taiwan that allows users to let their friends and loved ones know they're safe.
Facebook Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg said in a posting, "My thoughts are with everyone in Taiwan and across our global community affected by this disaster."
People in mainland China also reported that the tremor was felt there.
According to China's office handling relations with Taiwan, mainland officials have been in touch with their Taiwanese counterparts since shortly after the quake hit.
China, which considers Taiwan a renegade province, sent a letter offering rescue assistance if needed and expressed condolences to those who suffered in the quake.
Earthquakes frequently rattle Taiwan, but most are minor and cause little or no damage.
A magnitude-7.6 earthquake in central Taiwan in 1999 killed more than 2,300 people.
Information for this article was contributed by Wally Santana, Didi Tang and Ian Mader of The Associated Press and by Jonathan Kaiman and Rong-Gong Lin II of the Los Angeles Times.
A Section on 02/06/2016