TAIPEI, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Taiwan was shaken on Wednesday by a moderately strong earthquake just three weeks after a powerful tremor that killed 2,300 people. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
Officials said the 9:42 a.m. (0142 GMT) quake measured 5.3 on the Richter scale and was centred in Hualien, a seismically active area on Taiwan's eastern shore. The tremor shook buildings -- and rattled nerves -- in the capital Taipei.
State seismologists said the tremor was felt across northern Taiwan, and had a Richter magnitude of two in Taipei.
Much of Taiwan was still recovering from a mammoth September 21 quake, the island's strongest in a century at 7.6 on the Richter scale, which killed 2,321 people and left some 310,000 homeless or seriously affected.
A fresh assessment on Tuesday said the earlier quake toppled or damaged 51,000 buildings, rendering 82,238 homes uninhabitable.
Official estimates of the cost have tripled from earlier figures to T$292 billion (US$9.2 billion), counting actual physical damage and productivity lost to quake-related power outages.
(US$ = T$31.7)